“David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived,” a documentary that chronicles the life of Daniel Radcliffe’s doppelganger, whose accident during filming left him confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Produced by HBO Documentary Films and in collaboration with Sky and Lightbox / Ripple, a documentary will be released that promises to move Harry Potter fans. The title “David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived” is clearly reminiscent of the saga he wrote JK Rowling, but this work does not have the main goal of delving into the inexhaustible mythology of the young wizard of Hogwarts. On the contrary, it points to one of the most invisible realities of the numerous team of professionals who contributed to the creation of this pop culture phenomenon: the action doubles.
Daniel Radcliffethe actor who played Harry Potter in the eight films of the saga serves as executive producer and shares the image with the real star of this story. David Holmesa prodigy gymnast from Essex, England, who was chosen as a teenager to put his body at the service of cinema, when Radcliffe’s double carried out the most dangerous actions.
David Holmes was Daniel Radcliffe’s double throughout the Harry Potter saga (Warner Bros. via Esquire)
Together, in front of and behind the camera, Radcliffe and Holmes spent a decade experiencing the most meaningful experiences of their lives and embarked on the adventure of making the most successful film series in history. A bond that lasted until Deathly Hallows Part 1, when a tragedy on the set changed their lives forever.
In this shoot, during a high-risk sequence, David Holmes suffered an accident that resulted in a horrific spinal injury and left him paralyzed from the chest down. His brilliant career as a stuntman was abruptly interrupted and his life plunged into an abyss of uncertainty and unimaginable challenges.
During the production of the film “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” Holmes suffered the accident that left him paralyzed
This is what the official synopsis of David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived says.
“The film follows the coming of age of stunt double David Holmes, a great teenage gymnast from Essex, England, who is chosen to be Daniel Radcliffe’s stunt double in the first Harry Potter film when Daniel is only 11 years old. Over the next ten years, the two develop an inseparable bond, but in the penultimate film, a tragic accident occurs on set that leaves David paralyzed and sustains a debilitating spinal cord injury, turning his world upside down. As Daniel and his closest colleagues come together to support David and his family in times of need, David’s extraordinary resilience becomes his greatest source of strength and inspiration.“.
The documentary also includes behind-the-scenes footage of Holmes’ work, scenes from his current life and intimate interviews with him, Daniel Radcliffe and others close to him. But it also promises to be a broader stunt tour in the wake of the Cunning Stunts podcast, launched by Radcliffe and Holmes during the pandemic.
David Holmes took to social media to share his excitement about the launch of this project, which they have been working on for four years
Through his social networks, Holmes shared his excitement that this project came to light after four years of painstaking planning.
“In the turbulent world we live in now, I would like to quote Harry: ‘We are as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.’ I can only live because of the united love and support I have received. And thanks to this love and support, I can share my journey with all of you.“.
“I can only live thanks to the united love and support I have received. And thanks to this love and support, I can share my journey with all of you,” says Holmes on his networks.
The film will be released on Wednesday, November 15 on HBO and will also be available to stream on Max. Its release is highly anticipated, promising a more personal and in-depth look at the parallel lives behind one of the most beloved sagas in the entire history of cinema.