Daniel Radcliffe produces documentary about former stunt double, David Holmes, who was paralysed on set

Daniel Radcliffe’s upcoming documentary will follow the Harry Potter star’s stunt double who became paralysed after an on-set accident in 2009.

Daniel Radcliffe produces documentary about former stunt double, David Holmes, who was paralysed on set. Picture: HBO Documentary Films, Facebook.

Daniel Radcliffe has executive-produced a documentary about his former stunt double who was tragically paralysed on set.

David Holmes was just 11-years-old when he scored the “best job in the world”, being cast as Harry Potter’s stunt double.

However, 10 years later a tragic accident occurred on the set of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.

While filming a planned stunt featuring an explosion, Holmes — now 42 — was thrown backwards into a wall, breaking his neck and being paralysed from the chest down.

As reported in Variety, the upcoming HBOdocumentary, titled David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived, is set to explore the accident, the close bond formed between both men, and Holmes’ life following the accident.

Radcliffe and Holmes’ reportedly built an “inextricable bond” throughout their time together on set, which looks to have continued after the accident. Picture: HBO Documentary Films, Facebook.

“The film is a coming-of-age story of stuntman David Holmes, a prodigious teenage gymnast from Essex, England, who is selected to play Daniel Radcliffe’s stunt double in the first ‘Harry Potter’ film, when Daniel is just 11,” the synopsis reads.

“Over the next 10 years, the two form an inextricable bond, but on the penultimate film a tragic accident on set leaves David paralysed with a debilitating spinal injury, turning his world upside down.

“As Daniel and his closest stunt colleagues rally to support David and his family in their moment of need, it is David’s extraordinary spirit of resilience that becomes their greatest source of strength and inspiration.”

The film will also reportedly feature “candid personal footage shot over the last decade, behind-the-scenes material from Holmes’ stunt work, scenes of his current life and intimate interviews with David, Daniel Radcliffe, friends, family, and former crew”.

“The film also reflects universal themes of living with adversity, growing up, forging identities in an uncertain world, and the bonds that bind us together and lift us up,” HBOadded.

Holmes recalled that he knew he’d done damage right after the accident. Picture: @davidholmes83, Instagram.

Holmes seems to have kept in touch with several cast members from the Harry Potter series, including Tom Felton. Picture: @davidholmes83, Instagram.

In a 2014 interview with the Mirror, Holmes said he knew that he’d done damage after hitting the wall and landing on the crash mat.

“My stunt co-ordinator grabbed my hand and said, ‘Squeeze my fingers.’ I could move my arm to grab his hand but I couldn’t squeeze his fingers.’

“I looked into his eyes and that’s when I realised what happened was major.

“I remember slipping in and out of consciousness because of the pain levels. I’d broken a bone before, so recognising that weird feeling across my whole body from my fingertips right down to my toes, I knew I had really done some damage.”

The documentary, available from November 15 on HBO, is executive produced by Radcliffe and directed by Dan Hartley.

Homes appears to still be close with former Harry Potter stars. Picture: @davidholmes83, Instagram.

Holmes, former stunt double and gymnast from Essex, shared the exciting news on Instagram, revealing that the project has been in the making for the last four years.

“Being a stuntman was my calling in life, and doubling Harry was the best job in the world. In January 2009, I had a stunt rehearsal accident that changed my life forever,” Holmes wrote.

“This film tells the story of not just my achievements in front of the camera, but also the challenges I face every day, and my overall attitude to life after suffering a broken neck,” he wrote to 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’.

“I am only able to live because of the united love and support that I am fortunate enough to have had. And it is thanks to this love and support that I am able to share my journey with you all,” the post concluded.

Holmes now has his own podcast series, Cunning Stunts, that he launched with Radcliffe in 2020.

There, he highlights the work of stunt co-ordinators and performers.

Originally published as Daniel Radcliffe produces documentary about former stunt double, David Holmes, who was paralysed on set