Favorite Canadian Actor Michael J. Fox thought about maintaining a positive attitude after his Parkinson's diagnosiscalling it a “huge privilege” to support the Parkinson's disease community through his charity, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.
Fox, 64, stopped by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert discuss his memoirs Future boywhich was released on October 14, and to raise awareness about the disease.
“2025 marks the 25th anniversary of Michael J. Fox Foundationwhich has raised more than $2.5 billion to fight Parkinson's disease.” – Colbert said. “How does it feel to know that this is such a huge part of your legacy?”
Fox said that when he was diagnosed, he “spent some time trying to figure it out for myself for seven years” before deciding to go public.
“People's response was so good and then I realized the overwhelming power of it and all the energy focused on it, like I could tweak it and take it and turn it into something positive,” Fox said.
Colbert told Fox that he is admired not only for raising money for research into the disease, but also for staying in the public eye and being the face of Parkinson's disease.
“It’s very important that I don’t show up and say anything if I have something to say, and not show up and say it because people who have had Parkinson’s disease for years have been stigmatized,” Fox said. “So now to represent them, to be a marker of place in the community and to claim this land for us… I'm so honored by that. I'm so honored by that.”
“But this isn't about me. This is about all these families and people who want change and want things to get better and want to be healthy.”
For his landing Speaking with Colbert on October 21, Foxx also opened up about what it's like juggling filming. Back to the Future and popular sitcom Family ties at the same time.
Get the latest national news
To stay on top of news affecting Canada and the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you as they happen.
“During the day you played Alex P. Keaton. Family ties. A full day of filming on one sound stage and then Back to the Future at night,” Colbert said.
“The commanders pick me up, throw me in the shower, bring me a cup of coffee,” Fox recalls.
He said he drank coffee in the shower and then grabbed a milkshake on the way to set, and for three months he survived on only three to four hours of sleep.
“I was 23 years old and too stupid to know better,” Fox said.
Fox was diagnosed Parkinson's disease in 1991 at the age of 29 and founded a non-profit organization in 2000 to fund research into treatments and improve treatments for people living with the disease.
Parkinson's disease is a disease of the central nervous system that primarily affects motor function. This disease causes gradual damage to parts of a person's brain, leading to numerous symptoms including tremors, slowness of movement, and muscle rigidity and inflexibility. There is no cure.
IN interview With CBS Sunday morning in 2023, Fox stated that the degenerative disease has made aging more difficult. He described Parkinson's disease as “a gift that keeps on giving.”
“It sucks to have Parkinson's disease,” Fox told interviewer Jane Pauley. “It’s getting harder, it’s getting harder, every day you suffer, but that’s the way it is.”
Fox said Parkinson's disease has led to several injuries in recent years, including broken bones in the face and other parts of the body and the discovery of a benign tumor on the spine.
He explained that people don't die directly from Parkinson's disease, but Fox wasn't naive about his mortality either.
“I won't be 80. I won't be 80,” Fox said.
He argued that falls, food aspiration and pneumonia could be considered “big” killers for people with Parkinson's disease.
“I realize how hard it is for people and I realize how hard it is for me, but I have a certain set of skills that allow me to cope with these things, and I understand, with gratitude, that optimism is resilient,” he explained. “If you can find something to be grateful for, then you will find something to look forward to and carry on.”
Fox officially retired from acting in 2020, but recently announced that he would guest star in an episode of the TV show. Reduction in 2026.
In November 2023 he was given honorary OscarGene Gersholt Humanitarian Award for philanthropic work in the field of Parkinson's disease research. The award is given to “an individual in the film industry whose humanitarian efforts have brought glory to the film industry,” according to the Academy's website.
— With files from Global News
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert airs weekdays on Global TV at 11:30 pm ET/PT.
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
:quality(85):upscale()/2025/10/22/797/n/49351082/847a4e5f68f91d9c0ebb41.92551118_.png?w=150&resize=150,150&ssl=1 "Why I Went on a Fitmoon 6.5 Months Pregnant")
