David Lynch releases surprise short film on Netflix

Director David Lynch celebrated his 74th birthday on Monday by surprising fans with a bizarre short film.

The Twin Peaks creator dropped his 17-minute short film, titled What Did Jack Do?, on the streaming service without warning on Monday.

The project is described as an "offbeat" and "cerebral" crime drama and the synopsis reads, "In a locked down train station, a homicide detective conducts an interview with a tormented monkey."

Shot in grainy black-and-white, the short stars Lynch as a detective questioning a suspect named Jack in a windowless interrogation room as part of a murder investigation - but Jack is a small Capuchin monkey that wears a suit and talks.

It's not known who voices the monkey, as Jack Cruz is credited as "himself". The only other actor is Emily Stofle, who briefly appears as a waitress.

Lynch wrote, directed, produced, and edited the short. It was filmed in 2016 and premiered at The Fondation Cartier pour l'Art Contemporain art museum in Paris in November 2017, but this marks the first time it has been widely released.

The Mulholland Drive director's most recent project was the revival of Twin Peaks, which consisted of 18 episodes in 2017. He hasn't announced his next gig, leading many fans to believe that he is working on more episodes of the show or a spin-off movie.

Last year, Lynch received an Academy Honorary award, which represented his very first Oscar win, despite being nominated for Best Director for Blue Velvet, The Elephant Man, and Mulholland Drive during his career.

What Did Jack Do? is available to stream on Netflix now.