Naomi Watts said on Tuesday that she almost quit acting before David Lynch cast her in Mulholland Drive.

David Lynch, the filmmaker celebrated for his uniquely dark and dreamlike vision in such movies as “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive” and the TV series “Twin Peaks,” has died just days before

Naomi Watts revealed on “Live With Kelly and Mark” (via Entertainment Weekly) that she nearly quit acting before she met the late David Lynch, who cast her as the lead in 2001’s “Mulholland Drive.” The film’s critical acclaim and global success turned Watts into a star after “10 years” of “flunking auditions.

Naomi Watts credits the late David Lynch with saving her Hollywood career. The "Feud: Capote vs. The Swans" star shared that the director — whose family announced his passing on Jan. 16 — rescued her stalled career by casting her in 2001’s Mulholland Drive.