The Short and the Long of It

Despite its controversial portrayal of dwarfism, the Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant sitcom Life’s Too Short still has star Warwick Davis begging for its return a decade later

By Tom Fordy

In a recent BAFTA video, Warwick Davis reminisced about his best-known roles from over four decades in the entertainment business: Wicket the Ewok from Return of the Jedi, Willow from the George Lucas fantasy, the monstrous Leprechaun from the low-rent horror series, and Professor Flitwick from the Harry Potter films.

On the subject of which characters he’d like to revisit, Davis – who has been honored with a Bafta Fellowship at the 2025 Bafta Awards ceremony – name-checked himself. Specifically, the fictional Warwick Davis he played in Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s comedy,
Life’s Too Short. “Everyone wants more Life’s Too Short except Ricky Gervais,” said the 55-year-old actor. “Once he’s done something he stops… But, Ricky, I want more and everyone wants more.”