Michael J. Fox is quietly harboring a hope that his eventual passing won’t be marked by "drama," especially after enduring a 35-year battle with Parkinson’s disease. Opening up about his future with the "mysterious" illness—a condition he was first diagnosed with at the tender age of 29—Fox shared his candid reflections with The Times.
"There’s no set timeline, no predetermined series of stages you go through—not like you would with prostate cancer, for instance. Parkinson’s is far more enigmatic and unpredictable," explained the 64-year-old actor. "Not many people live with Parkinson’s for 35 years," Fox added. "I’d prefer to just not wake up one day. That would be ideal. I don’t want it to be a dramatic scene where I trip over furniture and smash my head."
Parkinson’s disease, a degenerative brain disorder, wreaks havoc on the nervous system and mobility, according to the Mayo Clinic. Throughout his illustrious acting career, Fox has had to innovate and adapt, finding creative ways to work around the symptoms of his condition. A doctor once suggested that acting could serve as a coping mechanism for his symptoms, as reported by The Times.
"It was helpful, to a certain extent," Fox reflected. "But that’s when I started breaking things. The number of things I broke is absolutely astonishing. Over a three-year span, I broke my elbow, my hand, developed a severe infection in my hand that nearly cost me a finger."
At one point, the "Back to the Future" icon even lost the ability to play the guitar that now sits beside his office desk. "It’s terrible," he lamented. "I had all these tiny bones broken, which got infected. They had to remove the infected bones. I broke my other shoulder and had it replaced. I fractured my cheekbone and now have a plate there. Am I forgetting something?"
"It’s been nothing short of a tragedy," he added.
"Now, I take it easy," Fox noted. "I don’t walk much anymore. I can walk, but it’s not a pretty sight, and it’s a bit risky. So, I’ve just incorporated that into my life—no pun intended."
Fox first rose to fame with his role in "Family Ties," earning three Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe for his portrayal of Alex P. Keaton in the beloved sitcom. While filming "Family Ties," he landed the iconic role of Marty McFly—a part that would forever alter the trajectory of his career. "Back to the Future" catapulted Fox to international stardom. A few years ago, he attended a convention dedicated to the Robert Zemeckis-directed film.
"I thought, well, I’ll do this for the fans," he told The Times. "But then I realized—no, it wasn’t really for them. It was for me. I wanted to express my gratitude. They’ve given me so much; my life is incredible. The disease is awful, but... people don’t pity me. They don’t see me as pathetic. I’m not sure how they perceive me, but I sense that they view me as a positive force."
Fox hasn’t stepped away from acting entirely over the years. He is set to appear in the upcoming third season of Apple TV+'s "Shrinking," marking his return to the screen years after taking a step back from the limelight.
