‘Twin Peaks’ Cast: Catch Up With the Stars of the ’90s Cult Classic

The two-time Emmy and Golden Globe winning show Twin Peaks has become a cult classic. Though the series only went on for two seasons from 1990 to 1991, much of the Twin Peaks cast was brought back for the 1992 film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me as well as the revival of the series in 2017.

Created by Mark Frost and David Lynch, the show begins after the murder of homecoming queen, Laura Palmer. Special Agent Dale Cooper is sent to Twin Peaks for the investigation of Laura’s murder and discovers that nothing is as it seems in the small, strange town.

Catch up with the Twin Peaks cast and see what they’ve been up to since 1991.

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Kyle MacLachlan as Special Agent Dale Cooper

After playing Emmy-nominated protagonist Dale Cooper (and winning a Golden Globe for his performance), Kyle MacLachlan moved on to some big roles. The actor reprised his Twin Peaks role in the 1992 film, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me and the 2017 revival series of the same name. In between he’s been in movies like The Flintstones (1994), Showgirls (1995) and Thunder Point (1998).

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In 2000, MacLachlan booked the role of Trey MacDougal on Sex and the City, where he remained until 2002. In 2006, he joined the cast of Desperate Housewives as Orson Hodge and stayed on until 2012. MacLachlan then had roles in How I Met Your Mother (2010), Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D (2014), Inside Out (2015) and Carol’s Second Act (2019). The actor married Desiree Gruber in 2002 and they have one child.

Michael Ontkean as Sheriff Harry S. Truman: Twin Peaks cast

The Sheriff of the Twin Peaks cast, Michael Ontkean, followed the series with a few roles. He returned for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, then starred in Rapture (1993), A Chance of Snow (1998), North Shore (2004) and The Descendants (2011). After this role, Ontkean retired from acting and didn’t return for the Twin Peaks revival series.

Mädchen Amick as Shelly Johnson

Following her role as Shelly Johnson in the Twin Peaks cast, Mädchen Amick booked a lot of big gigs. After returning for the Twin Peaks film in 1992, Amick starred in C.P.W. (1995), Wounded (1997), Twist of Fate (1998) and Fantasy Island (1998). She then went on to guest star in many iconic series, including Dawson’s Creek (1999), Gilmore Girls (2002), ER (2004) and Gossip Girl (2008).

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Amick then landed a spot on the series Freddie, but that only lasted for one season. In 2017, she was cast as Alice Cooper on Riverdale, which is directly inspired by Twin Peaks. That same year, she reprised her role of Shelly Johnson in the revival series.

Amick revealed she found out about the reprisal the same time the world did, recalling, “I woke up, on the morning that it was announced to a slew of text messages and emails on my phone, and I was, like, ‘What is going on?!’ … got in contact with David Lynch and his simple answer was, “I’ll see you very soon, in the beautiful world of Twin Peaks.”

Sheryl Lee as Laura Palmer/Maddy Ferguson: Twin Peaks cast

Probably one of the most iconic characters from Twin Peaks is Sheryl Lee as Laura Palmer. Considering the series is based around the murder of Laura, she is certainly an integral part of the show. After the series, Lee starred in the Twin Peaks film, which follows Laura Palmer’s final days before her murder.

When asked whether she thought she would reprise her role of Laura, referring to the 2017 reboot on which she was back, Lee shared she was shocked. “No, no, never! Never crossed my mind!” she explained. “It’s not necessarily that she felt completely finished to me. It’s more that I just didn’t think it was ever a possibility. I thought that was done.”

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After her days on Twin Peaks, Lee moved on to roles in Fall Time (1995), Follow the River (1995), Vampires (1998) and L.A. Doctors (1999). In 2005, she booked the role of Ellie Harp on One Tree Hill, playing lead Peyton Sawyer’s biological mother. Over the years, she appeared in House (2006), CSI: NY (2006), Psych (2010) and Rosewood (2016). Lee married Jesse Diamond in 2000, though they’re now divorced, and they have one son together.  

Dana Ashbrook as Bobby Briggs

After Twin Peaks and the sequel film, Dana Ashbrook had guest roles in Crisis Center (1997), Charmed (2001), Dawson’s Creek (2002) and Crash (2009). In 2017, Ashbrook returned for the revival series, as well as the movies Getting Grace and Restraint. Most recently he had roles in The Resident (2018), Insatiable (2019) and Please Baby Please (2022). The actor married Kate Rogal in 2015.

Ashbrook revealed he was clued in on the revival series when, in 2014, David Lynch tweeted, “That gum you like is coming back in style.” Ashbrook shared, “I got on the phone with Madchen [Amick], Sherilyn [Fenn], Sheryl Lee, James [Marshall] and Kimmy [Robertson], and we were just saying, “’What have you heard?!’”

Richard Beymer as Benjamin Horne: Twin Peaks cast

Richard Beymer got his big break playing Tony in the 1961 film, West Side Story. After his time as part of the Twin Peaks cast, Beymer had roles in My Girl 2 (1994), Murder, She Wrote (1996) and The X-Files (1996). The actor returned to acting for the Twin Peaks revival series, but that was his last role to date.

Lara Flynn Boyle as Donna Hayward

After Twin Peaks, Lara Flynn Boyle had an impressive career. She starred in movies that include Wayne’s World (1992), Red Rock West (1993) and Afterglow (1997). In 1997, Boyle booked The Practice, where she stayed until 2003. She then starred in Men in Black 2 (2002), Las Vegas (2005), Baby on Board (2009) and Death in Texas (2020).

Boyle didn’t return to the 2017 reboot, seemingly because of scheduling conflicts. However, there were rumors her absence was due to a rift on the set in 1990.

Sherilyn Fenn as Audrey Horne: Twin Peaks cast

Sherilyn Fenn, who portrayed Audrey Horne on Twin Peaks as well as the revival series, shared that she was thrilled about joining the 2017 project, because she didn’t feel it was over. “I think for a lot of us, it just ended abruptly. By the grace of God it kept continuing to gain a fan base. Everyone kept it alive … To be able to go back to something that so many people respect so much and say that [it] changed television…what a gift.”

She starred in Of Mice and Men (1992), Fatal Instinct (1993), Just Write (1997) and Lovelife (1997). In 1998, Fenn was cast in Rude Awakening, which went on for three seasons. She then had guest spots on series like Dawson’s Creek (2002), Law & Order: SVU (2002), Gilmore Girls (2007) and House (2008). Recently, Fenn has had roles in Something About Her (2021), Immortalist (2021), S.W.A.T (2021) and Shining Vale (2023).

Warren Frost as Dr. Will Hayward

Warren Frost, who plays Dr. Will Hayward, had a few small roles following the series’ end, among them Intruders (1992), Murphy Brown (1992), Sister Act 2 (1993) and Seinfeld (1998). In 1991, Frost appeared on Matlock in a role he would reprise multiple times until 1995. The actor did appear in one episode of the Twin Peaks revival, but unfortunately passed before the series could go on in 2017.  

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Peggy Lipton as Norma Jennings: Twin Peaks cast

Peggy Lipton rose to fame as Julie Barnes in the series Mod Squad from 1968 to 1973, but she had many roles afterwards. Following Twin Peaks, Lipton had spots in Angel Falls (1993), Wings (1994), Alias (2004) and Crash (2009). Later, she starred in When in Rome (2010), A Dog’s Purpose (2017) and returned for a few episodes of the Twin Peaks revival. Lipton sadly passed in 2019 at the age of 72.

James Marshall as James Hurley

Returning for both the Twin Peaks film and revival as James Hurley, James Marshall followed the series up with plenty of movie roles. He appeared in A Few Good Men (1992), Criminal Affairs (1997), The Shaft (2001) and In the Eyes of a Killer (2009). Most recently, Marshall worked on the TV series, The Pact (2022).

Everett McGill as Big Ed Hurley: Twin Peaks cast

Everett McGill had a much shorter acting career than the rast of the Twin Peaks cast, but his earlier credits is where he gained his fame. After the series, McGill had roles in My Fellow Americans (1996), Jekyll Island (1998), The Straight Story (1999) and an episode of JAG (1999). After that, he quit acting, butdid return for two episodes of the Twin Peaks revival.

Jack Nance as Pete Martell

After he portrayed Pete Martell as part of the Twin Peaks cast, Jack Nance had roles in Motorama (1991), Meatballs 4 (1992), The Demolitionist (1995) and Lost Highway (1997). Nance unfortunately passed in 1997, but in 2023, he appeared in the film Of Things Past, which was filmed over the course of 35 years.  

Joan Chen as Jocelyn Packard: Twin Peaks cast

Joan Chen had a lengthy career after Twin Peaks, including credits in Shadow of a Stranger (1992), Golden Gate (1993), Purple Storm (1999), The Sun Also Rises (2007) and Marco Polo (2016). Most recently, she could be seen in Under the Light (2023) and The Heart (2023).

Kimmy Robertson as Lucy Moran

Kimmy Robertson had multiple guest roles after Twin Peaks, including The Simpsons (1992), ER (1995), The Tick (1996), Becker (2003) and Psych (2014). After returning for the revival, she continued her role in Adventures in Odyssey (2023).