By Michaela Gordoni
Michael J. Fox said meeting his wife, Tracy Pollen, was his “greatest gift” at the 2026 Actor Awards this month.
“When I left school, I moved from Canada to LA to try to make it as an actor,” Fox said. “A teacher of mine told me, ‘Fox, you’re not going to be cute forever.’ I didn’t know what to say to that, so I said, ‘Maybe just long enough, sir.’ ”
“After three years of dumpster diving in LA, I ended up on FAMILY TIES, where I received the greatest gift of my career. I met my wife, the actor Tracy Pollan, who played Ellen, my girlfriend, and she gave me four gifts: our kids Schuyler, Aquinnah, Esmé and Sam. Sometimes I like to remind them, if it weren’t for acting, they wouldn’t be here.”
Fox, who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease, was at the show in recognition of his recent role on Apple TV’s SHRINKING, which is about a character, played Harrison Ford, who has the disease.
Related: BACK TO THE FUTURE Star Michael J. Fox Talks New Documentary, STILL: ‘I Love My Family’
At the Awards, Ford received the Life Achievement Award statue.
Last month, Fox said it took seven years for him to diagnose his Parkinson’s diagnosis. After he did, he didn’t regret it.
He said, “I went online and into Parkinson’s chat rooms, and I would go in anonymously, and would ask, ‘What do you think of this Michael Fox thing?’ And they would say, ‘It’s great.’ I would think, ‘You’re celebrating my having Parkinson’s.’ But then I got it, and realized these people were stuck in the rocking chair on the porch for all this time to just whittle away until they can’t move, and never had a part in solving their problems.”
“The more I thought about it, the more I thought it was a privilege, and in a way, a gift,” he said. “It’s a gift that keeps on taking, but if I look at the positive side of it…this is a role that I fell into and I found myself uniquely qualified to fulfill. Now people say, ‘I have what Michael Fox has.’ Parkinson’s patients now have an identity, and they don’t have shame.”
When asked about his legacy, the actor says he doesn’t think about it.
“Legacy is other people’s business; my business is to live my best life, do the best I can, the best work I can, seize opportunities like working with Billy and Harrison, and continue to write my story until the pin drops,” he explained.
It sounds like the BACK TO THE FUTURE star has a great outlook.
Read Next: Five Things You Can Learn from Michael J. Fox
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