The Boy Who Lived Is a Documentary About Daniel Radcliffe’s Paralyzed Stunt Double
From shadow to spotlight.
(SPOT.ph) Real life is never as magical as the Harry Potter franchise makes it out to be. Behind the scenes, stunt performers make it happen.
In an unexpected twist reminiscent of a Hollywood script, Daniel Radcliffe's stunt double in the Harry Potter films, David Holmes, is about to get a documentary of his own—but not for the expected thrills of his work.
David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived is an upcoming HBO documentary that chronicles the former stuntman's tragic accident on the set of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, which resulted in a severe spinal injury that left him paralyzed from the waist down.
What we know about David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived so far:
David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived is an intimate look into Holmes’ journey from an ambitious gymnast to a key player behind the magic of Harry Potter, whose life would be marked by a life-changing injury.
The documentary features a mix of personal footage, behind-the-scenes looks at his stunt work, and exclusive interviews with Radcliffe and the former crew.
In addition to being an interview subject, Radcliffe is the executive producer for David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived, which is set to premiere on HBO on November 15.
Who is David Holmes?
David Holmes hails from Essex, England. As a gifted gymnast, he was chosen to be Radcliffe’s stunt double for The Sorcerer’s Stone when he was just 11 years old. Over the next decade, Radcliffe and Holmes formed a close bond.
In 2009, Holmes experienced a high-speed, forceful pull from a strong wire during a "jerk back" stunt intended to simulate an explosion's impact while practicing a flying sequence at Warner Bros Studios in England. He was propelled into a wall, which broke his neck.
“I’ve got a relationship that goes back many, many years with Dave,” Radcliffe told The Mirror in 2014. “I would hate for people to just see me and Dave and go, 'Oh, there’s Daniel Radcliffe with a person in a wheelchair' because I would never, even for a moment, want them to assume that Dave was anything except for an incredibly important person in my life.”
Despite the challenges, Holmes continues to engage with the film community and his fans at 42 years old. As told through this documentary, his story highlights the risks stunt performers face and their impact on cinema.
"This film tells the story of not just my achievements in front of camera, but also the challenges I face every day, and my overall attitude to life after suffering a broken neck," Holmes wrote on Instagram. "In the turbulent world we find ourselves living in right now, I would like to quote Harry: 'We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.'"
Also read: Here’s What You Need to Know About the Future of Fantastic Beasts and Harry Potter