Michael J. Fox says he hopes his death isn’t “dramatic” after spending 35 years battling Parkinson’s disease.
The 64-year-old actor opened up about living with the “mysterious” condition, which he was first diagnosed with at age 29.
“There’s no timeline, there’s no series of stages that you go through — not in the same way that you would, say, with prostate cancer. It’s much more mysterious and enigmatic,” Fox told The Times.
“There are not many people who have had Parkinson’s for 35 years,” he continued. “I’d like to just not wake up one day. That’d be really cool. I don’t want it to be dramatic. I don’t want to trip over furniture, smash my head.”
Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative brain disorder that impacts the nervous system and movement. Fox said acting once helped him manage his symptoms — advice a doctor gave him early on.
“It was helpful, to a point,” Fox said. “And that’s [the point] where I break stuff. It’s absolutely incredible the stuff I broke. In a three-year period, I broke my elbow, I broke my hand, I got a big infection in my hand and I almost lost my finger.”
The “Back to the Future” star repeated his wish for a peaceful passing. “I’d like to just not wake up one day. That’d be really cool. I don’t want it to be dramatic. I don’t want to trip over furniture, smash my head.”
At one point, Fox even lost the ability to play the guitar he keeps by his office desk. “It’s terrible,” he said. “I had all these little bones broken, and it got infected, and they had to cut the bones out because the bones got infected. I broke my other shoulder, had it replaced. I broke my cheekbone. I had a plate here. I’m missing something?”
“It has been just like a tragedy,” he admitted. “I take it easy now. I don’t walk that much anymore. I can walk but it’s not pretty and it’s a bit dangerous. So I just roll that into my life, you know — no pun intended.”
Fox rose to fame on Family Ties, earning three Emmys and a Golden Globe for his role as Alex P. Keaton. During the show’s run, he landed the iconic role of Marty McFly in Back to the Future, the part that launched him to international stardom.