What? A Famous Singer Calls Missoula The Scariest Place on Earth

Back in the fall, the Roxy Theater in Missoula celebrated acclaimed film director David Lynch's 75th birthday with a series of screenings focusing on his films. The series ended with a screening of 2001's Mulholland Drive, which was paired with a live, in-person performance from singer Rebekah Del Rio, whose version of "Llorando" provides one of the most haunting and memorable scenes in the movie.

I was at the screening and it was a pretty incredible experience. I'm a longtime fan of David Lynch, and so was familiar with Rebekah Del Rio through her work on this film and also on Twin Peaks: The Return, so to see her in person performing those songs was a thrill.

This week, the singer spoke to Indiewire about her work on Mulholland Drive, and ended up recounting a tale from the time she spent in Missoula before the performance - which she deemed significant, because Missoula is also the birthplace of David Lynch.

Basically, it seems like Missoula really reminded her a lot of David Lynch's work - beautiful and terrifying at the same time. She even recalls a pretty scary encounter she had that turned into a positive experience:

"It was only after ending up in a creepy warehouse, encountering a man that reminded me of the monster near the trash can behind Winkies, escaping within an inch of my life, then finally ending up at a bougie restaurant having the very BEST Mexican food outside of Mexico City, did I realize I was just within the limits of the strangest story in the safest and scariest place on earth."

Could the dual nature of Missoula really be that much of an influence on Lynch's work? The thing is, he was born here... but he moved away when he was about two months old. Still, Missoula has worked its way into some of his stuff - for example, on Twin Peaks, Laura Palmer's cousin Maddy is said to be visiting from Missoula, and that led to a legendary shout-out to our town during a pivotal scene on the show.

There's also a rumor going around that David Lynch shot a new film in secret and plans to debut it at the Cannes Film Festival. If true, that would be his first feature film since 2006's Inland Empire, a whole sixteen years ago. It's doubtful, but who knows - and if he did, maybe he can work in another Missoula reference?