Legendary filmmaker David Lynch said he uses a supplemental oxygen tank now because of emphysema caused by decades of smoking. The “Blue Velvet” director revealed in August he was suffering from emphysema that was diagnosed in 2020. “I have to say that I enjoyed smoking very much, and I do love tobacco — the smell of it, lighting cigarettes on fire, smoking them — but there is a price to pay for this enjoyment, and the price for me is emphysema,” he wrote on social media in August. “I have now quit smoking for over two years.” Vowing to never retire from making movies, Lynch, 78, added that his doctors had said he was “in excellent shape except for emphysema.” Director David Lynch smokes a cigarette as he attends the “Twin Peaks” screening during the 70th annual Cannes Film Festival at Palais des Festivals on May 25, 2017 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Matthias Nareyek/Getty Images) In a new interview with People, he describes how smoking was a big part of his life and art, but he is now experiencing the consequences after starting at a very young age. “You’re literally playing with fire,” he said. “It can bite you. I took a chance, and I got bit.” After years of unsuccessful attempts to quit, he finally did when the only alternative was much less desirable. “I saw the writing on the wall, and it said, ‘You’re going to die in a week if you don’t stop’,” he said. “I could hardly move without gasping for air. Quitting was my only choice.” He encouraged other smokers to quit before their health deteriorates further. “It’s tough living with emphysema. I can hardly walk across a room. It’s like you’re walking around with a plastic bag around your head.” He added that he is essentially homebound because of his illness, which has kept him from a thing he always liked more than smoking: making movies.