The one thing Michael J Fox hates about modern actors: “We used to bust our ass”
Although he was already a household name by the time he was regularly appearing on the sitcom Family Ties, Michael J Fox blew up to become a global celebrity when he became Marty McFly in Back to the Future. It was a film and franchise that granted him immeasurable fame, but Fox has admitted today’s crop of actors don’t have to put in as much work to become “the most famous person in the world.”
Fox became synonymous with the iconic character of Marty McFly, but it was nearly a role that wasn’t his. Although he had initially been barred from appearing in Robert Zemeckis’ future classic due to his obligations to film Family Ties, a deal was worked out with producers after it became clear that Eric Stoltz, the original star of Back to the Future, wasn’t going to cut it as Marty.
The efforts taken by Zemeckis and producer Steven Spielberg to secure Fox’s involvement may seem fairly audacious when considering the many other options they could have chosen from. However, Fox clearly understood something about how to get into character that made him an attractive casting decision for any prospective director.
Although Fox has done significantly less acting in recent years due to his 1991 diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease, he’s still observed the ways in which film acting has changed in the decades since he was at the peak of his celebrity. While Fox certainly enjoyed being in the spotlight, he told People that his generation were “tougher”.
“We didn’t have social media, we didn’t have any of that crap,” he told the outlet. “We were just famous, left to our own resources, and it was an amazing time.”
The notion that someone of Fox’s fame could make acting decisions with anonymity is seemingly lost on today’s movie stars, who have to work hard to curate a public image that is attractive to studios and casting directors. In Fox’s generation, it was a genuine dedication to the craft of performing that helped them make an impact.
“We used to bust our ass, our acting muscles and watch other actors and sit around with other actors and talk about acting and talk about it,” he told the outlet.
You could easily argue that Fox’s natural charm made him a great fit for Marty, but his career is packed with roles where he didn’t feel like the obvious choice at all. Considering Back to the Future was both a box office smash and a full-blown cultural moment, it’s pretty impressive that he managed to dodge being typecast.
Between playing a weary American soldier in Casualties of War, a young addict in Bright Lights, Big City, an impassioned political advisor in The American President, and a paranormal expert in The Frighteners, Fox could never be labelled as an actor who “always plays himself”. That his career was cut short so early because of health-related issues means that Fox was denied even more opportunities to show his range.
It would be wise of today’s actors to seek out Fox’s advice, even if he’s shown no signs of slowing down. Fox was recently able to tell his life story in the Apple TV+ documentary Still, in which his vulnerable admissions about the pain of Parkinson’s offered courage to others that were struggling. There may be many younger stars who look to Fox for inspiration, but he is still a singular star whose legacy would be challenging to top.
