Yesterday was a very tough day for long suffering fans of the classic cult television series Twin Peaks, as news began to spread online, via the actors associated with the show, that cable network Showtime had cancelled their much-hyped about series revival that was slated for 2016. Cast members began to tweet to inform fans that co-creator David Lynch had called them all personally to inform them that he wouldn’t be directing the show anymore, as was been rumored some three weeks back. Finally, Lynch himself took to social media to explain exactly what was going on, and sadly, the news was not good at all. In a series of tweets, the acclaimed director had this to say:

“After 1 year and 4 months of negotiations, I left because not enough money was offered to do the script the way I felt it needed to be done. This weekend I started to call actors to let them know I would not be directing. Twin Peaks may still be very much alive at Showtime. I love the world of Twin Peaks and wish things could have worked out differently.”

The Ray Wise Fanclub released an image via Twitter than pretty much summed up the feelings of every Twin Peaks fan upon hearing the news:

Showtime, it seems, was completely blindsided by this proclamation from Lynch, and released out their own response to Lynch’s announcement on leaving the show.

“We were saddened to read David Lynch’s statement today since we believed we were working towards solutions with David and his reps on the few remaining deal points. Showtime also loves the world of  Twin Peaks and we continue to hold out hope that we can bring it back in all its glory with both of its extraordinary creators, David Lynch and Mark Frost, at its helm.”

So there you have it; as Lynch said, Showtime could still move forward with a Twin Peaks revival, but considering most of the actors involved are fiercely loyal to him, it’s doubtful they would return without his being part of the equation. That means means we’d probably get a remake of the original series with zero involvement from the original creatives in what would almost certainly be a universally loathed project, one I doubt Showtime actually wants to make. Based on their statement, it at least sounds like Showtime knows that without David Lynch and Mark Frost, there really is no Twin Peaks.

So what happens now? Is it really all over, just six months after it was announced? Or as many have guessed, could this simply just be David Lynch playing out a very public game of hardball with Showtime? Certainly another network would jump at the chance to grab this from Showtime and pay Lynch whatever he wants, but are there legalities preventing that from happening anywhere but Showtime? David Lynch and Mark Frost have been secretly planning this Twin Peaks revival for over three years, and recently series composer Angelo Badalamenti confirmed that he’d known about plans to bring the show back for two of those years and had to keep quiet about it. Apparently all the scripts are written, and co-creator Mark Frost still plans to release his novel The Secret Lives of Twin Peaks, that was supposed to bridge the twenty-five year gap between the original series and the new one. This isn’t about a creative reluctance to return to the show; this is about money, plain and simple.

Back in 1991, when the series was put on “indefinite hiatus,”  hardcore fans gathered together in an effort to save the series and formed C.O.O.P.–Citizens Opposing the Offing of Peaks. ABC got some 10,000 letters, logs and donuts, and the show got its final six episodes aired due to the massive fan outcry. It looks like it might be time for C.O.O.P. to make a comeback and convince Showtime to do the same (there is already a Change.org petition, for whatever that’s worth.) This Wednesday, April 8th, marks the 25th Anniversary of Twin Peaks, and there will no doubt be several articles about the show and its legacy, but now they’ll be marked by a tinge of bittersweetness. We can only hope the stars align for the show to be saved once more.

HT: Variety