Michael J. Fox reflects on his performance in Back to the Future. The beloved 1985 film follows Fox as Marty McFly, a teenager who is inadvertently transported back in time by a modified DeLorean built by the eccentric scientist Doc Brown (played by Christopher Lloyd). Before Back to the Future, Fox was known for the sitcom Family Ties, but the 1985 film catapulted him to a whole new level of superstardom. To this day, there is still massive interest in seeing Fox return to his career-defining role despite his retirement from acting in 2021 due to Parkinson's disease.
In a recent interview with Empire Magazine promoting STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie, a new documentary chronicling his battle with Parkinson’s disease, the actor reflected on his most iconic performance. Due to his TV contract, Fox filmed Back to the Future and Family Ties simultaneously, which left him so exhausted that he assumed his performance would be awful in the 1985 film. Fox was at a low point in his life, which changed when his agent called him and informed him that Back to the Future was a huge hit. Read Fox's full comments below:
I thought this would all soon be over. I thought they'd see what I'd done, I'd go back to the back of the pack and start again. I was doing a terrible TV movie called Family Ties Vacation. [I was] drinking too much, going to clubs and hitting every pub. I was drunk in my apartment, on the floor, and my phone rings and it was my agent. My first thought was, "It has to be terrible." My agent said, "You don't understand. This is the biggest thing in the world." My first instinct was, I have to get back to America! There are girls to meet!
I turned into a pretty good actor. I saw it back when it came out, at the Cinerama Dome, which was insanity, then I hadn't seen it in its entirety until a couple of years ago. It was Christmas. We were decorating the tree... I went to go get something from the kitchen and I was gone quite a while. Tracy came and found me and I was watching TV. I said, "Look, Back To The Future's on TV. You know what, I'm really good in this!" She said, "Yeah, we know." "Well, why didn't you tell me?!"
Michael J. Fox Was Great In Back To The Future
Despite his own initial assumptions, Fox's performance in Back to the Future was universally praised. He portrayed the character of Marty McFly with the perfect blend of humor, charm, and relatability. Audiences immediately became attached to Fox as a charismatic leading man, while critics consistently recognized that his performance was appealing and the glue that held the film together, even though some believed that Lloyd's performance outshone the rest.
At the 43rd Golden Globe Awards, Fox's performance in Back to the Future was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical. However, it wasn't until recently that Fox rewatched Back to the Future on TV and realized his performance was actually good, rejoicing "I’m really good in this!" Fox's current self-evaluation is a far cry from his fears at the time he was filming Back to the Future.
Source: Empire Magazine