Would Michael J. Fox still be an A-List actor today if it weren't for Parkinson's

[TMC]

What types of roles do you think he would portray?

[Schmoopie]

He's still a wonderful actor and has had some great roles. It's sad that he can't do as much as he used to but he's always been one of my favorites and I admire him so much.

[Family Ties Forever!]

I definitely think he would still be an A-list actor if he had not been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. He had many great movies over the years in addition to his best role (imo) on Family Ties ]tv show]. While the Parkinson's has slowed him down, he still acts. It's sometimes hard to watch him in interviews because he really struggles with the effects of Parkinson's Disease. Parkinson's didn't make him an A-list actor. He already was.

[Heenan Fan]

No offense to Ed Norton (who was great in the role), but I can honestly see MJF playing Woody Harrison's lawyer in The People Vs. Larry Flynt. An iconic role in an iconic movie imho.

[AMackII]

Of Course, Michael would've continued acting full time if the Parkinson does not affecting him.

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

Michael J. Fox has to be the luckiest actor in America! What other 5'4" male actor had a blockbuster movie trilogy AND a top 5 TV show in their career??

He has to be the ONLY one!

[jets4life]

Originally Posted by Family Ties Forever!

I definitely think he would still be an A-list actor if he had not been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. He had many great movies over the years in addition to his best role (imo) on Family Ties ]tv show]. While the Parkinson's has slowed him down, he still acts. It's sometimes hard to watch him in interviews because he really struggles with the effects of Parkinson's Disease. Parkinson's didn't make him an A-list actor. He already was.

I doubt it. Michael J Fox career was on a downhill trajectory, when he was more or less forced to retire. His last box office hit was Doc Hollywood in 1991, years before his Parkinsons Disease forced him to retire. He was very much a product of the 80s, and was a huge star at the time. However, it did not last. By the mid 90s, his career was in decline, as post-1991, the movies that he starred in were all box office bombs.

Looking back, Fox was only an A-list actor from 1985-91.

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

Originally Posted by jets4life

I doubt it. Michael J Fox career was on a downhill trajectory, when he was more or less forced to retire. His last box office hit was Doc Hollywood in 1991, years before his Parkinsons Disease forced him to retire. He was very much a product of the 80s, and was a huge star at the time. However, it did not last. By the mid 90s, his career was in decline, as post-1991, the movies that he starred in were all box office bombs.

Looking back, Fox was only an A-list actor from 1985-91.

Good points!

Plus how far can being a 5'4" actor really take you?? Has there EVER been an A list male actor only 5'4" in modern times?? Can't think of any.

Even Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Rock Hudson were taller than that! As were almost all Golden age Hollywood male actors.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by jets4life

I doubt it. Michael J Fox career was on a downhill trajectory, when he was more or less forced to retire. His last box office hit was Doc Hollywood in 1991, years before his Parkinsons Disease forced him to retire. He was very much a product of the 80s, and was a huge star at the time. However, it did not last. By the mid 90s, his career was in decline, as post-1991, the movies that he starred in were all box office bombs.

Looking back, Fox was only an A-list actor from 1985-91.

I briefly touched upon Michael J. Fox as a film actor in another thread. I said that a lot of his early success such as Family Ties and Back to the Future could be attributed to his easy-going charisma and nonthreatening likability. But on the same token, those same attributes that made Michael successful also made it difficult for him to translate into decidedly darker movies, such as Casualties of War. Just about all of Michael's more adult-oriented roles like Light of Day and Bright Lights, Big City didn't have much success.

Also many of Michael's key characters like Alex P. Keaton and Marty McFly and onscreen persona were so inextricably linked to the 1980s zeitgeist. He pretty much carved out the niche of being an on-the-make yuppie (especially in films like The Secret of My Success and Doc Hollywood).

I suspect that going into the '90s he wasn’t exactly bringing in the box office numbers anymore (especially once the Back to the Future trilogy came to a conclusion). Casualties of War and The Hard Way were supposed to be hits. Unfortunately, the former bombed and the latter, although successful, woefully underperformed. And then the films that he did which were successful beyond the ones mentioned above (such as Doc Hollywood, Life With Mikey, etc.) weren’t very successful on their own terms. The Frighteners was really his last chance to be a major star and it performed poorly. Although it’s now a considered a cult classic, it barely earned its budget back.

Plus (and it really pains me to say this), Michael J. Fox when you get right down to it, was going to have trouble as a leading man anyway without his health issues. He was too short and too likable to be credible as an action star, he didn’t do the successful pairings that might have been able to revive his box office, and he was never a romantic lead. What I mean is that Michael J. Fox you can argue, was already a very specific type of character actor. This goes back to my comment in regards to how his key characters and persona were perhaps, too inextricably linked to the 1980s zeitgeist.

I just don't know if Michael processed the versatility of Tom Hanks (who also first gained noticed as a TV star of a comedy series in the early '80s) to broaden his scope of film-work. Michael J. Fox was a baby faced star from the '80s and usually those don’t age or connect to new audiences very well.

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

Thanks for the frank comments TMC.

[80s Dude]

Yes.