Netflix Reveals David Lynch Short Film ‘What Did Jack Do?’ and It’s as Strange as You’d Expect

Oscar-nominated filmmaker David Lynch is a one-of-a-kind artist, but even his latest venture is strange by his standards. On Monday, the Twin Peaks co-creator’s 74th birthday, Netflix released a surprise short film by Lynch titled What Did Jack Do? In the bizarre 17-minute film, Lynch interrogates a monkey suspected of murder.

In the film, Lynch plays a detective who volleys questions at a capuchin monkey named Jack Cruz. The monkey wears a suit, designed by Pampered Primates according to the credits, and is shown with off superimposed fake lips when he replies to Lynch. The difficult plot appears to involve a murdered chicken and is filled with the kind of animal puns you would expect from a cartoon. It was also completely filmed in black and white, and Lynch does his best with a limited budget.

According to Vanity Fair, the short was produced by Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, a French museum and foundation founded by Cartier International in 1984. Lynch is beloved by French critics, who named Twin Peaks: The Return the best movie of the last decade in Cahiers du Cinema, even though it was a television show.

What Did Jack Do? is the first piece of new art from Lynch since he directed a 13-minute one-shot music video for his band Thought Gang. That bizarre film, titled “Ant Head,” was released in November 2018 and was also shot in black and white.

Before that film, Lynch helmed the 18-episode Twin Peaks: The Return, a revival of his cult 1990-1991 ABC series. He has not directed a traditional film since Inland Empire, starring Laura Dern, hit theaters in 2006.

In October, Lynch received an honorary Oscar for his career. He earned Best Director nominations for The Elephant Man (1980), Blue Velvet (1986) and Mulholland Dr. (2001) and was nominated for co-writing The Elephant Man. His other films include Lost Highway, Wild at Heart, The Straight Story, Eraserhead and Dune.

Lynch is a modern-day renaissance man, as a musician, photographer and painter as well.

“I feel we’ve been in very dark times and much better times are coming,” Lynch told The Guardian last year. “The thing is, bad news sells, frightening things sell, sensationalism sells. So we don’t hear all the good news that’s happening, because it seems kind of boring. But I think there are so many good things happening, and people thinking and inventing. I think the future’s looking very bright.”

What Did Jack Do? is now streaming on Netflix.

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