David Holmes made Harry Potter fly – until a tragic accident on set

Stunt doubles are often overshadowed by stars, even though they do the hard and dangerous work. This also applies to David Holmes, Daniel Radcliffe’s stuntman. His career started when he was only seventeen years old. Holmes took over Radcliffe’s stunts for seven films – from “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” to “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1”. But during the filming of this movie, an accident happened on set that left Holmes paralyzed.

That was almost 15 years ago and Radcliffe and Holmes are still friends. They became good friends during filming. Radcliffe describes Holmes as “the cool, conniving older brother I never had.”

The two are now back together on a film set for ‘David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived’. The documentary, produced by HBO, uses original footage to tell how the friendship between Holmes and Radcliffe developed over the years and how the people on set became a family.

You can see footage showing how much fun Holmes always had on the ‘Harry Potter’ set and how he says being a stunt double is ‘the best job in the world’. However, no one could have expected what happened during the filming of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1” in 2009. Holmes broke his neck during a stunt. The energetic and active 28-year-old was now confined to a wheelchair.

The remarkable thing is that Holmes did not let this accident stop him. The inspiring atmosphere is already palpable in the trailer. You can watch short clips of how Holmes is now inspiring young people with disabilities.

‘I’ve had such a crazy life. So many ups and so many downs. But I could find the light in the darkest places,” says Holmes.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Holmes says the stunt double community immediately supported him. There is the Taurus World Stunt Awards, which gives prizes to stunt doubles and is sponsored by Red Bull. “Immediately after my accident, the Taurus Foundation sent me a large check and I was able to buy an electric wheelchair and have my house renovated.” The stunt community has always stood behind him, and now he wants to do the same for them by telling his story in this documentary.

In 2020, he co-founded the podcast “Cunning Stunts” with Radcliffe. In it, they interview other stunt doubles and draw attention to the risks they are exposed to.

The documentary was released on November 15 on HBO’s streaming service. In Switzerland it will probably be available on Sky, further details are not yet known.

(cmu)