Casting What-Ifs
Eric Stoltz filmed five weeks as Marty before Michael J. Fox replaced him
In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:25:52Read transcript
- Michael J. Fox was initially unavailable because Family Ties needed him while Meredith Baxter Birney was absent
- Eric Stoltz filmed for five weeks but was judged too dramatic, insufficiently comic, and unconvincing on a skateboard
- The studio approved spending another $3 million to replace Stoltz and reshoot with Fox
- Stoltz continued filming temporarily after the replacement decision while the production secured Fox
- Christopher Lloyd and Lea Thompson are quoted describing Stoltz as talented but too intense for the needed comedy
- Johnny Depp, Charlie Sheen, John Cusack, Ralph Macchio, and C. Thomas Howell were also considered or auditioned
- John Cusack is judged a plausible alternate because he could balance comedy, drama, awkwardness, and charm
- Fox’s athletic physical comedy is credited as essential to the final performance