It's the 35th anniversary of "Twin Peaks" this year, with the first episode of David Lynch's acclaimed mystery-horror drama premiering back on April 8, 1990.
To celebrate, the streaming service Mubi has added all 48 episodes of the series — 30 episodes of "Twin Peaks" and 18 episodes of "Twin Peaks: A Limited Series Event" (also referred to as "Twin Peaks: The Return" or "Twin Peaks" season 3) — available to stream right now.
If you haven't heard of Mubi, that's understandable. It's not currently on our list of the best streaming services, though we're planning to review it for consideration later this year.
But I've been a Mubi subscriber for a while, and it's probably the best streaming service you've never heard of. Especially for cinephiles who love indie, arthouse and foreign films.
So, for those who aren't familiar, let's dive into what "Twin Peaks" is about, why you need to watch it, and why Mubi is worth signing up for to stream the iconic series right now.
What is 'Twin Peaks' about?
"Twin Peaks" and its follow-up, "Twin Peaks: A Limited Series Event," are, for the most part, about the investigation of the murder of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee).
The shows are set in the fictional Pacific Northwest town of Twin Peaks, and stars Kyle MacLachlan as FBI special agent Dale Cooper, who is tasked with investigating the local teen's untimely demise.
It's tough to pin down a genre to define this show. It's a mystery show, to be sure, but there are elements of soap opera campiness and melodrama as well as plenty of surrealist horror. Because the series was created by and directed by David Lynch, it often takes on a more cinematic presentation than the typical TV show. The pilot was a two-hour-long feature film.
Despite these quirks, or (more accurately) because of them, the show was a massive critical success. Season 1 earned 14 Emmy nominations and season 2 earned four more, while also winning several Golden Globes. "Twin Peaks: A Limited Series Event" was similarly critically successful, earning nine Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe nomination for MacLachlan's reprisal as Dale Cooper.
It's safe to say that, unless you've already seen "Twin Peaks," you've never seen a show like "Twin Peaks."
Get Mubi and start streaming 'Twin Peaks' today — along with these other great movies
As of today, you can stream all eight episodes of "Twin Peaks" season 1 on Mubi, including the feature-length pilot.
You can also stream all 22 episodes of season 2 and all 18 episodes of "Twin Peaks: A Limited Series Event," which is set 25 years after the events of the season 2 finale.
Now, it's important to note that you cannot watch the prequel movie, "Fire Walk With Me," on Mubi. You need to head to Max for that.
Nor can you watch the deleted scenes compilation film "Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces." You'll need to head to The Criterion Channel — another underrated streaming service for cinephiles — to watch that movie.
But beyond the three seasons of "Twin Peaks," there are a lot of great movies to watch on Mubi.
We've even covered a few of them here at Tom's Guide. Last year's hit body horror movie "The Substance" is available to stream on Mubi right now, as is the hilarious documentary "Grand Theft Hamlet," which covers the attempt to recreate Shakespeare's "Hamlet" entirely within the game "Grand Theft Auto Online."
So head over to Mubi and get yourself a membership now. It comes with a seven-day free trial in case you decide it's not for you or you binge through the entire 48-episode run of "Twin Peaks" in a week and decide you don't need more than that.
Stream "Twin Peaks" and "Twin Peaks: A Limited Series Event" on Mubi
Malcolm has been with Tom's Guide since 2022, and has been covering the latest in streaming shows and movies since 2023. He's not one to shy away from a hot take, including that "John Wick" is one of the four greatest films ever made.
Here's what he's been watching lately:
- I just saw one of my favorite movies in theaters for its 40th anniversary — but you can stream it for free right now
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