Director David Lynch to posthumously receive 2025 Writers Guild Laurel Award

The late Twin Peaks director David Lynch is to be honoured with the 2025 Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement.

Lynch, who also directed Blue Velvet (1986), Mulholland Drive (2001) and Eraserhead (1977), had accepted the award in late 2024 prior to his death aged 78 earlier this month.

The award is given to members of the guild who have “advanced the literature of motion pictures and made outstanding contributions to the profession of the screenwriter”.

WGAW president Meredith Stiehm said of the director: “Writer-director David Lynch’s uncompromising vision pushed the boundaries of filmmaking, we’re proud to honour him and his legacy.”

The award will be presented by Kyle MacLachlan, who starred in Lynch’s Blue Velvet, Dune (1984), and Twin Peaks, at an awards ceremony in Los Angeles on February 15.

Past recipients of the award include Oliver Stone, Nancy Meyers, Charlie Kaufman and Eric Roth.

During his career Lynch had been Oscar-nominated four times, including two nods for The Elephant Man (1980) for directing and adapted screenplay, and two more directing nominations for Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive.

In 2019 he received an honorary Academy Award, which recognises individuals who have made significant contributions to the industry but have not won an Oscar.

The award comes after Lynch’s children honoured him with a “worldwide group meditation” for 10 minutes on January 20, which would have been his 79th birthday.