BACK TO THE FUTURE Star Michael J. Fox Talks New Documentary, STILL: ‘I Love My Family’
By Movieguide®️ Contributor
Actor Michael J. Fox debuted his new documentary STILL: A MICHAEL J. FOX MOVIE at the Sundance Film Festival.
The documentary offers a glimpse into his personal life, including his struggles with Parkinson’s disease.
“When I look at the film, the thing that screams at me with how lucky I’ve been and how successful my life has been is the stuff with my family. It’s such joy,” Fox said who received a standing ovation after the showing of his movie at the festival.
Despite his optimistic outlook, he admits that life with Parkinson’s has had its challenges, enduring many injuries due to the disease that effects the nervous system and in turn affecting his mobility.
“It got to the point recently with all these injuries where, I don’t want to get too grim, I certainly got disappointed with the way things were going,” Fox said.
In STILL he talks about struggling with alcoholism as a way of coping with the disorder and thanks his wife of over thirty years Tracy Pollan for helping him overcome his addiction. Fox sees the blessing behind Parkinson’s and wants to tell his story to encourage and help others.
“This rocks. I’ll take this. I love my life. I love my family. I love what I do… I love that I can be an example to people and help them deal with their issues,” he said whose organization has helped raise 1.5 billion dollars for Parkinson’s research.
The father of four also shared with Variety at the festival about his BACK TO THE FUTURE costar Christopher Lloyd who played Doc Brown in the franchise.
“It took me a few films to get to know him. On ‘Back to the Future Part III’ we connected in a way we hadn’t on the other films. I came to see how much he loved acting. I never got that before,” Fox said,who recently reunited with Lloyd at a New York Comic Con.
He also mentioned of the “enigmatic” Lloyd, “To sit down and talk about acting and talk about Shakespeare and ‘King Lear’ … This guy can play King Lear! People don’t expect that of him. He’s full of surprises.”
In addition to his well-received documentary at Sundance, Fox recently was bestowed an honorary Oscar for his work in fundraising for Parkinson’s research as reported in Movieguide®️:
Michael J. Fox was presented with an honorary Oscar at this year’s Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences 13th Annual Governors Awards.
Fox was given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in honor of his work surrounding Parkinson’s disease, which he was diagnosed with in 1991.
He founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2000 and the organization has been working to find a cure for the disease. Woody Harrelson, a longtime friend of Fox, presented him with the award.
“Michael J. Fox sets the ultimate example of how to fight and how to live. And today, he is as beloved for his activism as he is for his acting,” Harrelson said.
“Michael J. Fox never asked for the role: Parkinson’s patient or disease advocate. But make no mistake, it is his greatest performance,” he continued. “Michael brought the world to the same place where we all feel invested in finding a cure for a cruel disease. Vulnerable: yes. A victim: never. An inspiration: always. And a living, breathing symbol and singular voice to help advance progress toward a cure.”
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