Which actor did Michael J Fox replace in ‘Back to the Future’?
In a decade of stellar sci-fi flicks with loveable protagonists, 1985’s Back to the Future still stands the test of time.
Robert Zemeckis’ fifth feature leaned into the comedic elements of the genre, creating a time-travel movie that is full of charm and sentimentality. For all the merits of the premise, the script, and Christopher Lloyd’s zany performance as the scientist, however, it’s Michael J Fox’s turn as Marty McFly that truly makes the film a feel-good family movie for the ages.
Back to the Future follows high school student Marty who is inadvertently sent back in time to 1955 in Dr Emmet Brown’s time-travelling DeLorean. There, he accidentally tampers with his parents’ timeline, putting his own existence in jeopardy. Eventually, he is able to not only ensure his life but alter his parents’ paths so that they are more fulfilled in the present.
As Marty, Fox is bursting with infectious energy. He even looks like a teenager, which, as anyone who has seen a high school movie knows, is never a given. It’s impossible to imagine the film or its success without him, so it’s startling to learn that he was not, in fact, the studio’s first choice. He wasn’t even the first actor to win the part.
So, who was originally cast as Marty McFly?
Robert Zemeckis’ first chose actor Eric Stoltz to play the lead. At the time, Stoltz was the next big thing, having impressed directors with his serious Method approach to acting and his role in Cameron Crowe’s Fast Times at Ridgemont High. The expectation was that he was on the cusp of stardom, and Back to the Future seemed to be the perfect vehicle for his breakthrough.
As soon as the cameras started rolling, however, Zemeckis and screenwriter Bob Gale became uneasy with their choice. He was undeniably skilled as a dramatic actor, but he took that tone a little too far, conceiving of the film as more tragic than comic. Even worse, he brought the wrong energy to the set. As Lea Thompson, who played Marty’s mother in the movie, remembered, “All the young actors wanted to be like De Niro and Pacino, which was good in a lot of ways […] But it was not the right movie to behave like that. Eric had such an intensity”.
He added: “He saw drama in things. He wasn’t really a comedian, and they needed a comedian. He’s super-funny in real life, but he didn’t approach his work like that, and they really needed somebody who had those chops.”
Zemeckis quickly gained permission from studio executives to replace Stoltz with his own first choice, Michael J Fox, but the switch didn’t happen right away. The film had a tight budget and schedule, so they continued to shoot footage as if everything was normal, focusing on the close-ups of the other actors, even as Stoltz continued to turn up to work and perform his scenes.
Zemeckis remembered the excruciating moment he told the young actor that he was being fired, saying that he broke Stoltz’s heart. But the decision was clearly the right one. It’s hard to imagine a serious version of Back to the Future turning into the timeless classic that the comedic version is today.
