Michael J. Fox is opening up about his struggles with Parkinson's disease and how it impacts the future of his acting career. In his newly released memoir, "No Time Like the Future," the "Back To The Future" star writes that "not being able to speak reliably is a game-breaker for an actor," according to Fox News.
"Absent a chemical intervention, Parkinson’s will render me frozen, immobile, stone-faced, and mute — entirely at the mercy of my environment," the 59-year-old actor explained. "For someone for whom motion equals emotion, vibrance and relevance, it’s a lesson in humility."
A spokesperson for Fox confirmed on Saturday to the outlet that the star "is not actively looking for work." That does not necessarily mean he has walked away from acting completely though. The spokesperson explained that "if something great comes along and it works for him, he would consider it."
Fox was officially diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1992, but only chose to go public with the news six years later. He retired from "Spin City" in January 2000, but in 2013 he returned to primetime network TV as Mike Henry on NBC's "The Michael J. Fox Show," according to his official biography.
He went on to make several TV guest appearances, but later semi-retired from acting as his symptoms worsened. In an interview with People earlier this month, Fox admitted he was struggling with acting amid his Parkinson's disease battle.
"My short-term memory is shot," he revealed. "I always had a real proficiency for lines and memorization. And I had some extreme situations where the last couple of jobs I did were actually really word-heavy parts. I struggled during both of them."
Fox has now turned writing into his main creative outlet.
"I’m down to this," he said. "My guitar playing is no good. My sketching is no good anymore, my dancing never was good, and acting is getting tougher to do. So it’s down to writing. Luckily, I really enjoy it."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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