Daniel Radcliffe’s stunt double was left paralyzed by a spinal injury. Documentary shows his story.
Daniel Radcliffe became a worldwide celebrity as the main character in “Harry Potter.” Millions of people watch the story of the young wizard with the round glasses and the lightning-shaped scar every year. But he wasn’t the only one who embodied the fictional character for ten years (from 2001 to 2011). His stunt double David Holmes has also been there since the first part of the film series and took on the more daring scenes. Until a devastating accident while filming “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1” changed his life. His story is told in the new documentary “David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived,” out November 15th and directed by Dan Hartley.
In 2001, Holmes – then a 20-year-old gymnast from Essex, England – was cast as a stunt double for “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” Since then, he has taken over the risky moments of Radcliffe, who was still eleven years old at the time, with whom he developed a close friendship over the years. In the penultimate installment of the film series based on JK Rowling’s books, an on-set accident left Holmes paralyzed by a severe spinal injury.
According to producing network HBO, the documentary will feature “personal footage from the last decade, behind-the-scenes footage of Holmes’ stunt work, scenes from his current life and intimate interviews with David, Daniel Radcliffe, friends, family and former colleagues.” In addition to his role as an interviewee, Radcliffe will also be an executive producer on the work. “David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived” will also reflect “universal themes” such as “living with adversity, growing up, forging identities in an uncertain world, and the connections that hold us together and lift us up,” according to the US -American television program providers.
The collaboration between Daniel Radcliffe and David Holmes didn’t stop after the “Harry Potter” films. In May 2020, the actor and his double launched the podcast “Cunning Stunts,” in which they interviewed stunt artists from Hollywood – including “Titanic” actor Derek Lea, “Harry Potter” colleague Paul Lowe and Bond girl stunt double Jo McLaren . The podcast hosts want to shed more light on and, above all, honor the often forgotten industry.
“I think there is a myth about stuntmen that they are somehow superhuman,” Radcliffe told the online portal “Deadline” at the start of the podcast. “When the public sees something really painful or horrible, they think it was a visual effect or that there’s a clever, safe way to do it. But that is often not the case. For example, you can’t fake falling down a flight of stairs. If you get hit by a car, you’ll still get hit by a car, even if it’s going slower than it should. They find the safest way to do it, but it can still hurt,” he continued.