David Holmes—his life, association with 'Harry Potter,' upcoming HBO documentary
Daniel Radcliffe may have laid claim over the iconic title of "The Boy Who Lived," but beyond the 70mm screen, there's an unsung hero who epitomizes this phrase. Stuntman David Holmes, Radcliffe's stunt double in the Harry Potter films, had everything going for him—a career of his choice and a chance to be on a magical film set. However, a debilitating accident upended everything.
What happened to Holmes?
Holmes (now 42) is the man who made Radcliffe fly, dive, fall, and get back up in the eight films that are such a vital part of the pop culture world. However, a dreadful accident on the sets of Deathly Hallows 1 in 2009 proved deadly; he broke his neck, which sentenced him to a six-month stay in the hospital, eventually leaving him paralyzed.
Details of the accident that swallowed his career
Per Independent, "Holmes was rehearsing a flying scene at Warner Bros, Studios when he was pulled backward 'at speed' by a high-strength wire in a 'jerk back' stunt." Holmes later told The Mirror that he was "slipping in and out of consciousness because of the pain levels." He was paralyzed from the chest down, with limited movements in his arms and hands.
From reel to real: This is how Radcliffe helped Holmes
Following the accident, Radcliffe and Tom Felton (who regularly speaks about his HP experience), visited him regularly. The eponymous HP actor also held a charity auction and dinner to raise money for Holmes's medical bills, calling him "an incredibly important person in [his] life." Notably, Holmes was also a competitive gymnast and his first job came in the film Lost in Space.
Holmes is now an ambassador for RNOH, England
Holmes seeks to help others like him, and to this end, in 2013, he became an official ambassador for the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, England. Revisiting the accident in 2014, he said, "Sometimes I do get flashbacks from the accident - I re-live it sometimes when I'm drifting off to sleep - but it's something I've learned to live with and manage."
Now, his life is the topic of a documentary
Now, Holmes's life has become the cynosure of an upcoming documentary that will revolve entirely around his life, the accident, and its aftermath. Radcliffe and Holmes are its executive producers. It will include "candid personal footage shot over the last decade, behind-the-scenes material from Holmes's stunt work, scenes of his current life, and intimate interviews with Daniel Radcliffe, friends, family, and former crew."
Here's the documentary's synopsis and streaming details
The documentary's synopsis reads: "As Daniel and [David's] stunt colleagues rally to support David and his family in their moment of need, it's David's extraordinary [resilience] that becomes their greatest source of strength and inspiration." Dan Hartley's David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived will stream on HBO on November 15. It'll be an ode to how Holmes found light in the darkest of times.
