Where in the Horror are they Now? Warwick Davis!

Last Updated on July 21, 2021

WARWICK DAVIS

THEN: There are movie legends and then there are MOVIE LEGENDS! Imagine an actor being a part of not only the STAR WARS franchise, but HARRY POTTER as well. Come on man, this weeks subject was a freaking Ewok early on in his career! Very few actors can say they played an Ewok in a STAR WARS flick, but Warwick Davis has! Of course you can probably guess why we’ve chosen this talented character actor for this weeks Where in the Horror are they Now! This week we can look forward to a special day where we all get our drink on and party at a local pub. I’m talking St. Patrick’s Day baby!

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, there lived a little Ewok named Wicket. Yep, this is where Warwick Davis’ career began, in STAR WARS: EPISODE VI – RETURN OF THE JEDI back in 1983. While JEDI may not be everybody’s favorite STAR WARS flick, the film is way up there as part of the original trilogy. And yes, Wicket was pretty gosh darn adorable. And while it seems like we are hearing about so many new STAR WARS stories being told now, there was a similar expansion in the sense the Ewok’s had a few more stories after JEDI, and Davis returned to play Wicket in two TV-movies; The Ewok Adventure in 1984 and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor in 1985. For years, you could even find Wicket on the Star Tours attraction at Disneyland.

Next up, the 3’6” tall actor appeared in a couple of cult classics that are still embraced by fans. In 1986, he was the Goblin Corps in the David Bowie and Jennifer Connelly starring LABYRINTH in 1986. Yet it was the title character in Ron Howard’s WILLOW in 1988 that truly solidified him as a major talent. The actor was perfectly cast as Willow Ufgood alongside Val Kilmer and Joanne Whalley, and he made for the perfect unlikely hero. It is a rare thing when a little person is given leading role in a major motion picture, and while it wasn’t a huge hit in the States, it made up for it in international markets, home video and on TV.

And now, the franchise that propelled Davis into a new kind of horror icon. Perhaps the LEPRECHAUN franchise isn’t everyone’s four-leaf-clover, but I’ve always had a fondness for the series. Mostly because Warwick is devilishly charming as the little green guy with a penchant for gory deaths. The actor has taken on this character in LEPRECHAUN (1993), LEPRECHAUN 2 (1994), LEPRECHAUN 3 (1995), LEPRECHAUN 4: IN SPACE (1996) and of course, LEPRECHAUN IN THE HOOD (2000) and LEPRECHAUN: BACK 2 THA HOOD (2003). In BACK 2 THA HOOD, he seemingly said farewell to the LEPRECHAUN series. As silly as that movie is, it’s one of my favorites in the series, and you can hear yours truly moderate the commentary with director Steven Ayromlooi – what an awesome dude – on the Blu-ray.

During his LEPRECHAUN years, he also happened to be in the hugely popular series of films about a boy wizard. In 2001, he began his journey with HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE as the Goblin Bank Teller and Professor Flitwick. The actor continued with the franchise in THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS (2002), THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN (2004) – this time in a character simply called “Wizard” – THE GOBLET OF FIRE (2005), THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX (2007), THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE (2009) and finally in DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1 (2010) and PART 2 (2011). And let’s face it, with the upcoming opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Hollywood – it is already a huge success in Orlando – Harry Potter and his wizard friends are going to be around for a very, very long time.

Warwick Davis isn’t simply limited to these roles either. He has appeared in both the TV-series Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader in 1989 and the big screen version, THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN in 2008. He was featured in the 1996 TV mini-series Gulliver’s Travels. He starred in PRINCE VALIANT in 1997, STAR WARS: EPISODE 1 – THE PHANTOM MENACE in 1999, CAPONE’S BOYS in 2002, RAY in 2004, the horror flick SKINNED DEEP also in 2004, THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY in 2005, and THE UNBROKEN in 2012. I’d say that this is one hell of career the accomplished actor has had.

NOW: This 46-year-old, UK born actor is still working hard. He was awesome playing himself in the Ricky Gervais series Life’s Too Short about a day in the life of the actor. And then there is a little movie that came out last year called STAR WARS: EPISODE VII – THE FORCE AWAKENS where he starred as Wollivan. The beauty of genre (sci-fi, horror, fantasy) is that many times it opens itself up to some pretty creative casting. Thanks to all the monsters and creatures that inhabit this side of Hollywood, there is room for more imaginative casting. And Mr. Davis has made such a huge contribution. And while the LEPRECHAUN franchise certainly didn’t live up to say HALLOWEEN or FRIDAY THE 13th, we all are very aware of Davis in the title role.

Next up for Warwick? According to IMDb, the actor has two films currently in production. Hopefully we will be seeing SHORTFELLAS – a comedic crime caper – and VALERIA 3D make it to the big screen. And it may be a safe bet that his work in the STAR WARS franchise is not quite finished. If you’d like to see what this crazily talented fellow has coming up, you can like him on his official Facebook page, his official Twitter page, or you can catch him on his official website. Either way, you have to respect an actor that has had the incredible success that Davis has. Now if you excuse me, it may be time to revisit WILLOW. Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone!