David Lynch was working on a Netflix limited series, says Ted Sarandos

David Lynch was in the process of creating a new limited series for Netflix when he died this week, according to Ted Sarandos.

The streamer’s co-CEO posted a moving tribute to the visionary filmmaker on Instagram on Friday, which included the revelation. He says that years after their first meeting, during which Lynch screened an early excerpt of Mulholland Drive for Sarandos, he “came to Netflix to offer a limited series, which we jumped on. »

“It was a David Lynch production, full of mystery and risks, but we wanted to continue this creative adventure with this genius. First Covid, then certain health uncertainties meant that this project was never realized, but we made it clear that as soon as it was possible, we were all involved,” Sarandos added.

He called Lynch’s work “remarkable, visionary, daring and artful” and lamented that he “will always wonder what he had in mind for us with what would have been his last project.”

Deadline has contacted Netflix for more details on this limited series. This post will be updated when/if we receive a response.

In an interview with Deadline in April, Lynch revealed that Netflix dropped his animated project under the radar. Snootmondeand he was looking for financiers for this project.

“Snootmonde It’s kind of an old-fashioned story and today’s animation is more about superficial jokes,” he said at the time, reflecting on the reasons for Netflix’s rejection. “Old-fashioned fairy tales are considered grouchy: apparently people don’t want to see them. The world is different now and it’s easier to say no than to say yes.

This isn’t to say that Lynch didn’t have another project in mind for Netflix, but it does indicate that Lynch had a few projects in the works at the time of his death.

In his post, Sarandos called Lynch “one of my favorite filmmakers of all time,” recalling how he made a deal with Lynch to buy in bulk Eraser head for Netflix back when the company still rented DVDs. It was the first time they met, Sarandos said. Lynch eventually made a short film for Netflix called What did Jack do?

“David Lynch was an unapologetic genius. He didn’t want you to understand his work. He knew it was impossible and that it was part of the journey together,” Sarandos wrote.

Sarandos’ tribute was just one of dozens that poured in from across Hollywood when news of Lynch’s death broke Thursday. Patricia Arquette, Isabella Rossellini, Mädchen Amick, Ron Howard, Sting, Judd Apatow and more were among those who honored the 4x Oscar nominee.