When David Lynch officially released his cast list for the Twin Peaks revival last month, fans of the drama were delighted with the mix of actors making their return. Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) will be fronting the revival, in addition to other notable characters including the Double R Diner’s Shelly Johnson (Mädchen Amick) and Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton), though not all previous characters were present in the cast announcement. We won’t be seeing Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) and Annie Blackburn (Heather Graham), nor Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie) and Josie Packard (Joan Chen). In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Laurie explained why her character won’t be making an appearance in the show, and the reason, it appears, might boil down to comic relief.
“I made it very clear to David and the team that I would be delighted to come back,†she said. “I had a fantastic time on the original and won lots of awards. I’m surprised and I have no idea why I haven’t been called back. I did send a note to David that I would be delighted to return, but I think most of the material that I was in on the original didn’t really involve the darker aspects of the show, and I can guess maybe that’s where David and Mark Frost are going, but I really don’t know. My character was more on the silly, comic, fun side.â€Â
Despite Josie Packard meeting her demise near the end of Peaks’ second season, it was confirmed that she wouldn’t be appearing in the revival either. (Hey, we never know what goes on in the Black Lodge, after all.) “She was not asked to return,†EW’s source said regarding Chen. “Lynch couldn’t find something for her or Piper Laurie that would make sense. They had conversations, but couldn’t find a way for her to return … she’s not upset about it. If she was involved, she would comment on it.â€