Harry Potter star Warwick Davis tonight paid tribute to his wife following her death aged 53.
Samantha Davis, who was an actress and met her husband when she had an uncredited role in his 1988 film Willow, tragically died on March 24.
Star Wars actor Davis paid an emotional tribute to his ‘favorite human’ to whom he was married for more than 30 years and with whom he shared three children.
‘His passing has left a great void in our lives as a family. “I miss his hugs,” the 54-year-old said in a statement to the bbc.
He described Sammy, as he called her, as his “most trusted confidant and a fervent supporter of everything I did in my career.”
“He was a unique character, he always saw the happy side of life, he had a wicked sense of humor and he always laughed at my bad jokes,” Davis added.
The couple’s children, Harrison and Annabelle, said “their love and happiness accompanied us throughout our lives.” “Mom is our best friend and we feel honored to have received love like hers,” they added.
Davis said he felt like he could accomplish anything with his wife by his side, likening it to the feeling of having a “superpower.”
The wife of Harry Potter star Warwick Davis has died at the age of 53. Samantha Davis, who was also an actress, met her husband when she had an uncredited role in his 1988 film Willow.
Warwick and Samantha Davis with their children Harrison and Annabelle at the Star Wars: The Last Jedi premiere in California in 2017
Warwick Davis and his wife Samantha Burroughs on their wedding day in 1991
She said her mobility had been affected in recent years, but shared that she was determined not to let it get her down.
He had a brush with death in 2019 when he fell ill with sepsis before a family vacation.
Davis previously told how he and the couple’s children ‘said goodbye’ at her bedside before she recovered.
The actor and his wife lost their son Lloyd just nine days after his birth in 1991, the year they married.
Davis said in 2022 that he wouldn’t wish the ‘devastating’ experience on anyone, adding: ‘You never get over it.’
He and Samantha met when Davis played the sorceress Willow Ufgood in the 1988 film that bears the character’s name.
Samantha and her father Peter, who is Davis’s business partner, had minor roles as villagers.
He also had an uncredited role as an elf in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in 2011, in which Davis played Filius Flitwick, Hogwarts’ charms professor, for the last time.
In 1989, he participated in the BBC educational series Through the Dragon’s Eye.
Davis and Burroughs, 77, co-founded Willow Management in 1995 with the goal of changing the way people with dwarfism were portrayed on screen.
Burroughs is also an actor and has appeared on both stage and in film and television productions, including The Legend of King Arthur, Hamlet, and as Ewok in the 1983 Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi.
Davis and his wife share actress daughter Annabelle, 27, and son Harrison, 21, together.
Samantha Davis and Warwick Davis attend the ITV Palooza! held at The Royal Festival Hall on 16 October 2018
Harrison also appeared as an elf in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. Annabelle played Lacey Lloyd in Hollyoaks until January this year.
Speaking about the death of her first child to People in 2022, Davis said: “I think it brings you closer, or something, but it’s an experience I wouldn’t wish on anyone, it’s devastating.”
“You learn to live with it and eventually, over time, you’re able to better understand why it happened and you’re able to accept it a little bit more, but you never get over it.”
“I think the losses shaped our family dynamic, we love Annabelle and Harrison even more because they are here with us.”
Lloyd inherited dwarfism from both parents and died from complications caused by the condition.
The couple lost a second child, whom they named George, when Samantha miscarried at 20 weeks in 1993.
Samantha Davis with her husband when she starred in Spamalot at the Playhouse Theater in London in 2013.
Warwick Davis, his wife Samantha, daughter Annabelle and son Harrison attend the premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens in Leicester Square on December 16, 2015.
Warwick with his wife Samantha and children Harrison and Annabelle at the screening of the Disney+ series Willow
Davis and his wife Samantha at the London Palladium in 2015
Samantha Davis came close to death in 2019 when she fell ill with sepsis before a family vacation. Above: hugged by her daughter in the hospital
Davis added: “We will always remember what happened to George and Lloyd. We will always be grateful to have had them for the short time we had them.”
The star previously said the tragedies made him and Samantha stronger as a couple.
Speaking on Bear Grylls’ Bear’s Mission TV show in 2018, he said: “Before Annabelle and Harrison we had a baby, Lloyd, who inherited our conditions… and that’s a fatal thing.”
‘It’s something a baby won’t survive. But Lloyd, who he lived for, survived for nine days, but yes, it was beautiful… but it was a difficult time. And yes, we also had a dead baby.
The star said he and his wife had gotten through the painful moment together, saying: “Those kinds of things just make you stronger.” [as a couple].’
Davis was born with an extremely rare condition called congenital spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia (SED), where bone endings fail to form. It meant she never grew taller than 3 feet 6 inches.
His wife had a different form of dwarfism called achondroplasia.
Samantha fell ill with sepsis before a family caravan holiday in 2019.
He initially thought his symptoms were caused by the stress of preparing for the trip.
When her exhaustion prevented her from standing without support, her husband called a doctor after hours and she was rushed to the hospital.
Davis said in 2022: “The next few hours were the longest of my life as I waited in the ward with our children in the empty space left by Sam’s hospital bed. I hoped it didn’t symbolize a future for us without her.
He continued: Our family gathered at his bedside; Although optimistic, we were kind of saying goodbye in case Sam didn’t survive.’
Warwick Davis as Filius Flitwick in Harry Potter. He played the Charms Professor in all the Harry Potter films.
Davis with Val Kilmer in the 1988 film Willow. He met his future wife Samantha while making the film.
Warwick Davis meets King Charles, then Prince of Wales, at Willow charity premiere
Warwick Davis as the sorcerer Willow Ufgood in the 1988 film Willow
Davis reprized his role as Ufgood in the television series Willow, which aired in 2022 but was later canceled after just one season.
“It’s very difficult to see someone you love more than anything in the world fighting to stay alive without having the strength to even turn over in bed.”
Doctors became concerned about a scar on Samantha’s back from recent spinal surgery she had undergone. Davis said he was “swollen with fluid, red and hot to the touch.”
Tests showed Sam had a deadly Streptococcus bacteria and a meningitis infection, which meant he needed emergency surgery.
However, she recovered and Davis cared for her to help her over the course of three months.
Davis reprized his role as Ufgood in the television series Willow, which aired in 2022 but was later canceled after just one season.