Update 7/06/17

Attention, Peakers everywhere.: the rumors are true, Twin Peaks is making its Comic-Con debut at SDCC this summer! While David Lynch is not scheduled to be there, Kyle MacLachlan, Naomi Watts, Tim Roth and a good chunk of the show’s cast will be making their Hall H debuts.

After the panel, there will be a signing, and a special advance screening will be held at 10:PM for badge holders on a first come, first serve basis. For the full scoop and line-up, check out Showtime’s tweet below:

#TwinPeaks is headed to #SDCC. pic.twitter.com/Bet9Rxn6xr

— Twin Peaks (@SHO_TwinPeaks) July 6, 2017

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Back in 1991, a 16-year-old me threw a shoe at the television in anger and despera
tion at the cliffhanger final episode of Twin Peaks. “HOW can the show end like this??” I wondered, thinking I’d never get an answer to the millions of questions posed by the finale. Although series co-creator David Lynch would return to Twin Peaks a year later with a prequel theatrical film Fire Walk with Me, when that movie underperformed at the box office, plans to bookend the series with a second movie taking place after the series were canceled.

As the cult status and cultural significance of Twin Peaks grew over the years, the question of whether or not Lynch and Mark Frost would return to the series kept popping up, though with both creators always shooting down the possibility. Plans for a “season three” comic book were drawn up, but Lynch nixed the whole thing saying he wanted no continuation of Twin Peaks in any way.

But at USC’s retrospective on the series back in 2013, when a fan asked about a possible continuation of the show, co-creator Frost responded with a cryptic tease, saying “Twin Peaks is a continuing story….and that comes from both David [Lynch] and myself.” This one comment started a flurry of new rumors.

Then, in October 2014, Lynch went on Twitter and made it official:

Dear Twitter Friends: That gum you like is going to come back in style! #damngoodcoffee

— David Lynch (@DAVID_LYNCH) October 3, 2014

Showtime followed up Lynch’s tweet with confirmation that Twin Peaks would return, as a limited series run on their network. It wasn’t all smooth sailing after that, however. For about a month in 2015, Lynch had officially dropped out of production over contract negotiations. The cast clamored to get him to return, and in May of 2015, Lynch was back on board; filming commenced in the fall of that year.

What with a new season of Twin Peaks coming our way in the near future, we’ve all got a few questions about what we should expect. And so, here’s everything we know so far about the imminent return of Dale Cooper and that sinister Washington mountain town.

When will Twin Peaks season three premiere?

The series will premiere on Sunday, May 21, and will consist of a two-hour special. Immediately following this, episodes two and three will be made available on Showtime’s digital platform, meaning you will have the option to watch four hours of new Twin Peaks on premiere night. The remaining episodes of the show will presumably roll out on a weekly basis following that. Showtime president Gary Levine has seen the whole season in a private screening and describes it as “the pure heroin version of David Lynch.”

How many episodes are there going to be?

Although the original announcement back in 2014 was for nine episodes, the order doubled to 18 hours. Apparently, Lynch’s brief departure on the series in the spring of 2015 had to do with arguments over the number of episodes produced.

David Lynch and Mark Frost are making every episode

Original series creators Lynch and Frost are behind the entire series this time around. Although Lynch only directed six episodes of the original show, and Frost only wrote or co-wrote 11 of them, both are collaborating on every single episode of the new series together. This will also be the first movie or TV project from Lynch since 2006’s Inland Empire.

What will the story be?

Right now, we have almost no idea what the story will be at all. Both Lynch and Frost have kept a tight grip on any and all plot information, and there have been practically no leaks–a true rarity in this spoiler-filled age. Cast members were only allowed to see the pages of their scripts that contained their character’s parts.

We do know that the new show is not a reboot in any traditional sense, and picks up 25 years after the events of the original series, just as Laura Palmer predicted to Agent Cooper in the series finale. But aside from that, we don’t know what the plot is going to be at all.

Most of the original cast is returning

Almost the entire living original season one cast is coming back for the new series, including Kyle MacLachlan as Agent Dale Cooper and Sheryl Lee as (presumably) Laura Palmer. There are over 200 members of the cast, which you can see right here.

Notable original cast members not returning however are Michael Ontkean as Sheriff Harry S. Truman, Piper Laurie as Catherine Martell, Lara Flynn Boyle as Donna Hayward, Joan Chen as Josie Packard, Michael J. Anderson, and Heather Graham as Annie Blackburn. There are rumors that some of these actors might be making uncredited cameos, and that some have even been recast. The recently deceased Miguel Ferrer (Agent Rosenfield) shot his scenes before his death in January 2017, as did  Catherine E. Coulson (the Log Lady), who died in September of 2015–right around the time filming started.

Other notable cast members who passed long before the new show started filming are Frank Silva (Killer BOB) and Don Davis (Major Briggs). It will be interesting to see how the show deals with their absence, particularly Frank Silva’s.

There are a ton of well known new cast members

In addition to much of the original cast returning, a metric ton of new cast members are joining the series, including well known names like Amanda Seyfried, Naomi Watts, Tom Sizemore, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Laura Dern, Ashley Judd, Michael Cera, Jim Belushi, Monica Belluci, Matthew Lillard, and musicians Trent Reznor and Eddie Vedder.

The new season filmed at the original locations

Much like the classic series, the new Twin Peaks was shot on location in Snoqualmie and North Bend, Washington, as well in Southern California, and in the Mojave Desert. Parts were also apparently shot in Paris, France. Shooting took place from September 2015 until at least April 2016. Twede’s Diner in North Bend, which stands in for the Double R Diner, was completely remodeled to look as it did in the early ’90s.

Are there going to be more seasons?

This is THE question, isn’t it? According to David Lynch, Mark Frost, and Showtime’s David Nevins, this is meant as a one-time-only “event” series that is made to give the story of Twin Peaks a proper conclusion. Having said that, however, at the recent TCA event in January, Lynch said to “never say never” about a return to Twin Peaks.

Also, while doing a recent interview on the Twin Peaks Unwrapped podcast, actress Sherilyn Fenn said that while on set, David Lynch told her that if people like the show, that he would do more.” In the same interview, Fenn paraphrased Lynch in saying, “The hardest part is writing it, it’s just really buckling down and getting it written.” Fenn added that Lynch said, “If they love it, I would do more.”

Did Mark Frost’s novel The Secret History of Twin Peaks give any clues?

Very little, but a few. The book’s narrative ends at about the same point the original show ends. It did reveal to us that Audrey Horne survives the bank explosion cliffhanger at the end of the original series, and that the other characters in that explosion died (presumably since the other actors in that scene, including Jack Nance, have long since passed.)

The novel also introduced the character of Sheriff Frank Truman, who was Harry Truman’s older brother, who was the town Sheriff before him. A lot of fans are guessing that Robert Forster isn’t a recast Harry Truman as reported, but is playing Frank, who is town Sheriff once more. The book gave one more tantalizing clue — Major Briggs suspects there is something not quite right about the Dale Cooper that came out of the Black Lodge at the end of the original series.

Angelo Badalamenti will return to create the score

The music of Twin Peaks is as iconic a part of the show as the actors or the references to coffee and cherry pie, so fans should be happy that original series composer Angelo Badalamenti is back scoring the new show. Also coming back is original “Roadhouse Singer” Julee Cruise. Showtime released a video of Angelo playing a new arrangement for “Laura Palmer’s Theme,” which you can check out above.

Does Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me factor into the new series at all?

Twin Peaks’ controversial 1992 prequel movie Fire Walk with Me was directed by David Lynch, but didn’t have the involvement of Mark Frost, leading many to wonder if the new series would ignore the events of the film. Not so, according to Lynch. “The story of Laura Palmer’s last seven days is very, very important for this,” he said at the TCAs–the only real hint he gave to the new series’ storyline.

The prequel films takes place one year before the events of the series, and deals with the FBI investigation into the murder of a waitress named Teresa Banks. The lead investigators on the case are special agents played by singer Chris Isaak and Kiefer Sutherland (and later, MacLachlan’s Dale Cooper). The movie then flashes forward a year later to seven days before the murder of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), the event that kicks off the series.

The film added to elements to the supernatural mystery of the show, including a mysterious ring with an owl symbol on it. Showtime is airing the film on March 1, and it will also be available on Showtime’s streaming service. Showtime is definitely communicating the idea that the movie is an important part of the overall canon.

New Showtime Teaser Trailers Give Vague Hints

Showtime has just dropped two new teaser videos for the series, which feature footage from the original show mixed with brief snippets from the new one. The first contains a very large spoiler for how the cliffhanger ending of the original show, so if you still haven’t seen the classic series through to the end, you may want to skip watching it, or reading any further.

Still with us? Ok. The first teaser video begins with the last image we see from the original series, with agent Cooper staring into the mirror, only to see the image of Killer BOB staring back. We then cut to new footage of Kyle MacLachlan as Coop emerging from the darkness. This seems to indicate that the cliffhanger ending of the original show is not something they are going to shy away from storywise.

The second teaser features the iconic opening moment of the original show, with the dead body of Laura Palmer being unwrapped from her plastic shroud on the beach where she was found. We then cut to what appears to be new footage of Laura’s high school homecoming photo, taped to a wall (evidence wall?) We know this is new footage because Laura’s iconic photo was only ever shown in the original series as being in a frame. This indicates that the murder of the town’s beloved homecoming queen is still very much in play in this new chapter.

Finally, Showtime has dropped a 2 1/2 minute trailer that pretty much spoils the entire original series. But for those of you out there who have seen the show, it’s a great “previously on” recap of the series, as well as Fire Walk With Me.

Another new teaser from Showtime has given us images of the iconic locations from the show, 25 years later.

And yet another new teaser gives us our first “25 Years Later” glimpses of a sad looking Big Ed Hurley (Everett McGill), and equally sad looking Sarah Palmer(Grace Zabriskie), Deputy Andy (Harry Goaz), Deputy Hawk (Michael Horse), and, of course, Agent Dale Cooper, looking as dapper as ever, played by Kyle MacLachlan.

Also included in the teaser is Harry Dean Stanton, reprising his Fire Walk With Me character of trailer park owner Carl Rodd. You can check out the new teaser down below:

And in this teaser, we’ve got Madchen Amick as Shelly Johnson, Kimmy Robertson as Lucy Moran, Harry Goaz as Deputy Andy, plus David Lynch as Gordon Cole and the late Miguel Ferrer as Agent Albert Rosenfield. Of course, we catch a glimpse of Agent Dale Cooper as well, as played by Kyle MacLachlan. You can check out the teaser down below:

Showtime has also dropped a three part mini-documentary titled Twin Peaks: The Phenomenon, all bout the genesis of series, along with its resurgence and resurrection with a whole new generation of fans. David Lynch himself is interviewed in these videos, and hidden in there we’ve got some glimpses of new footage from the brand new season. You can check out all three parts down below:

Entertainment Weekly Gives Us Our First Behind-The-Scenes Look

After months of waiting, we finally have our very first cast photos, thanks to a cover story for the March 31, 2017 edition of Entertainment Weekly. The triptych cover shoot showcases co-creator/director David Lynch, along with returning cast members Kyle MacLachlan (Agent Dale Cooper) Sherilyn Fenn (Audrey Horne) Sheryl Lee (Laura Palmer), James Marshall (James Hurley), Everett McGill (Big Ed) Wendy Robie (Nadine Hurley), Madchen Amick (Shelly Johnson), Dana Ashbrook (Bobby Briggs), and Peggy Lipton (Norma Jennings).

The set for the photo is made to resemble the Red Room/Black Lodge, and sprinkled throughout the picture are pieces of Twin Peaks iconography, like donuts, cherry pie, coffee, and owls. Oh, and the mysterious blue rose, which Fire Walk With Me introduced. You can see all three covers in the tweet below:

Your exclusive first look at the trippy @SHO_TwinPeaks revival is here! https://t.co/FWfhYSHl7P #TwinPeaks pic.twitter.com/UjcZeZtMCz

— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) March 23, 2017

David Lynch is notorious for not giving away any spoilers, and the accompanying article doesn’t reveal much beyond the little we already know. But Showtime’s CEO David Nevins did say this: “Twin Peaks is a cosmology. What I think is satisfying about the new version is that it’s a deeper exploration of that stuff. What is the Red Room? How does the Red Room work? Where is Agent Cooper? Can he make it back?”

Hmmm….does this mean that the Agent Cooper we see for most of the show will be the evil double from the Red Room, which took his place in Twin Peaks at the very end of the original series’ run? So many questions. In the meantime, you can watch a 40-minute behind-the-scenes video from Entertainment Weekly about the Twin Peaks reunion photo shoot by clicking right here.

Also thanks to the Entertainment Weekly cover story, we also have pics of a very special cast member, as David Duchovny returns as Agent Denise Bryson! In the original 1990 series, a young pre-X-Files Duchovny got one of his first TV gigs playing an old friend of Agent Cooper’s who he calls in to help him out of a jam, DEA Agent Dennis Bryson. Only in the intervening years, Dennis had become Denise.

Although Denise’s introduction into the show can be considered a bit problematic in modern context (the Sheriff’s station cops all seemed shocked, and Hawk refuses to shake her hand at first), Agent Cooper treats Denise just as he would Dennis, and soon everyone follows suit. It’s an early example of a transgender character not being played for laughs and showed as being a capable and fully human individual.

Now we have our first look at Duchovny’s return, where he appears to be in some kind of courtroom. You can see the new photo of Duchovny as Denise Bryson below, and for more photos from Entertainment Weekly’s behind-the-scenes collection, look to our gallery below.

Image Credit: Marc Hom / Entertainment Weekly

Variety also ran a cover story on the return of the beloved series this week, including several photos taken of David Lynch and cast members Kyle MacLachlan and Laura Dern. For all the excitement about the return of the show, many forgot that the new Twin Peaks is also a Blue Velvet reunion, bringing together Laura Dern and Kyle MacLachlan after 30 years.

COVER STORY: Inside the roller-coaster journey to get @DAVID_LYNCH‘s #TwinPeaks back on TV https://t.co/7fj7Iq4v7O pic.twitter.com/UQ62JX83rA

— Variety (@Variety) May 9, 2017

Will Dern be playing Agent Cooper’s previously unseen secretary Diane in this new season? That’s the prevalent rumor, but who knows what Lynch has in store. Regardless, it is great to see these two actors together again, and with Lynch at the helm. Variety made a six minute behind-the-scenes video of the photo shoot interviewing Dern and MacLachlan, which you can watch down below:

So what new info did we get from this latest Variety article? Not a whole lot, although there were details about how the show was saved after Lynch left the project in early 2015 over budgetary issues. According to the article, Showtime CEO David Nevins and Gary Levine went over to Lynch’s house after he announced his departure. “Gary brought cookies,” according to Lynch. And over baked goods and coffee, everything was worked out, and production soon began. To keep with the baked good theme, when Lynch delivered cuts of the new season, he sent along doughnuts (of course he did).

Another interesting reveal was that the new Twin Peaks won’t take place just in Twin Peaks. “There are different threads in different parts of the U.S.” that eventually converge, According to David Nevins. “It does not go outside the U.S., but it is in multiple locations in the U.S.”

And for those expecting a similar structure to the original classic show, don’t hold your breath, according to series co-creator Mark Frost. Frost issued a warning in the article, telling fans “It’s going to be very different this time around.”

So did Lynch give any clues to the show this time around? Just one — He says the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me is very important to understanding what’s coming May 21 when the new show premieres.

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What do all of you out there want to see in the new Twin Peaks? Be sure to let us know down below in the comments.

Images: CBS / Showtime