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Prince William's Unexpected Gesture to Put 'Harry Potter' Star at Ease Shows He’ll Be a Great King

Warwick Davis accepted an OBE from Prince William for his services to drama and charity.

Hollywood actor Warwick Davis was at Windsor Castle this week to pick up the Order of the British Empire (OBE), but the moment royal watchers are talking about wasn’t the medal itself. The 56-year-old, who has been a fixture in the entertainment industry for decades, shared a surprisingly candid moment with Prince William during the ceremony. Instead of the usual stiff protocol, William spent a good minute leaning in and laughing with David — a heartwarming nod to a guy who’s done as much for charity as his contributions to the big screen. 

This easy rapport with the Prince of Wales stole the show. Rather than staying behind the formal podium, the Prince bent down to share a private word with the actor face-to-face. For Davis — who was born with a rare form of dwarfism called Spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita — this small gesture made the whole ceremony feel a lot more personal and capped off a moment of real mutual respect. Speaking to HELLO! after the event, the actor was quick to praise William’s approach, noting, “It was lovely the way he came down to my level instead of standing and looking down at me.” 

In a clip shared by the official Instagram account of the Prince and Princess of Wales, Davis joked about their conversation, saying the Prince seemed genuinely surprised that he hadn’t been honored before. “The Prince of Wales said to me today, ‘Have you got one of these already?’ I said no, no,” Davis recalled in the video. “I worried that if I said yes — ‘Well, you’re not having this one’ — but he said, ‘I’m really surprised, I thought you had one already. You should have had one years ago,’ which is really nice.” 

While Davis has spent more than four decades in the spotlight — starting at age 11 in Return of the Jedi and appearing in every Harry Potter movie — he views this royal recognition as something far more valuable than a Hollywood trophy. Talking to Radio Times, after he was named in King Charles’s New Year Honours list in December, he said, “It’s a very dignified honor…It’s not like a BAFTA – it’s not big and shiny and show-bizzy.” 

Reflecting on the moment, he noted that it felt like a simple recognition of his past contributions to drama and his charitable efforts. He was clear, however, that the award was never the motivation. “I didn’t do any of what I do to get an award. I just do it because I enjoy doing it,” Davis said. The honor also serves as a tribute to his late wife Samantha, with whom he co-founded Little People in the UK in 2012 to provide support and resources for the dwarfism community.