Judi Dench’s Grandson Persuaded Her to Dance for His TikTok Videos and She Invited Him to Play in a Movie in Return

Judi Dench is a very successful movie actress. She is an Academy Award winner for her role as Queen Elizabeth I in the romantic comedy Shakespeare in Love, and has been nominated for this award 8 times. It’s interesting that the actress was on screen in the movie Shakespeare in Love for a total of 8 minutes but it was enough to conquer the hearts of the audience and critics. By the way, short TikTok videos also get hundreds of thousands of views. But the actress takes part in them, not for the sake of popularity, but to have fun with her grandson.

«It saved my life.»

When Judi Dench had to limit her social contacts and lock herself down in her own house to protect her health, she didn’t know how to relieve her boredom. Reading and watching movies didn’t really help her because she was diagnosed with macular degeneration in 2012 which significantly worsened her eyesight.

So, her grandson Sam Williams came up with the idea to make TikTok videos starring his grandmother. Later, he would say, “I was bored. And I just thought it would be a really nice thing for me and my grandma because we are close and we’re not together.”

At first, Sam told his grandmother a few jokes and filmed her reactions, and then they filmed a few dances. Some people who came across these videos online thought they were fake. Sam even had to make another video where he showed his family photos to prove that he really was Judi Dench’s grandson.

These videos not only became viral but also helped the actress cope with her boredom. In an interview, she revealed that these videos saved her life. However, it’s more correct to say that it was her grandson who did it because it was his idea to make videos and it was he who motivated her to practice as much as possible.

The most demanding film director

Judi who had worked with famous film directors said that her grandson happened to be the most demanding one. “No, you can’t do it now you’re not good enough. Do it again, do it again, do it again!” he would say when they were making a video.

Nevertheless, the actress liked the process so much that even after returning to her regular lifestyle and work, she continued to make these TikTok videos. The actress joked, “I hope I’m asked to do more, but of course, I can’t ask for the part.”

But Judi’s grandson never gave up on his grandmother. In November 2022, he also convinced his mother, Judi’s daughter, and famous journalist Louis Theroux to join their dance.

Together on the red carpet and on screen

Judi likes to spend time with her grandson not only at family gatherings. He was her date at the 94th Academy Awards ceremony. And in order to show him what it is like to be an actor, she persuaded him to play in the Christmas comedy Spirited together with her. “It was such a special thing to do with Ma and experience what she does on a daily basis,” Sam wrote on Instagram.

On her 81st birthday, Judi Dench got a tattoo on her wrist saying Carpe Diem which means “seize the day” in Latin. And it seems that she passed down this life philosophy to Sam. So, if his granny gets bored again, he’ll know how to cheer her up.

Do you know any other entertaining stories about grandmothers and their grandchildren?