Marty McFly
Another of the more well-known ‘almost cast’ actors was actually cast as the beloved time traveling teenager Marty McFly in the 1984 classic Back to the Future. From the outset, director Robert Zemeckis really wanted to cast Michael J. Fox as the 17-year-old high school student as he felt Fox’s acting timing in the sitcom Family Ties was exactly what the role required. Unfortunately, when Steven Spielberg (who was Zemeckis’ mentor) asked the show’s producer Gary David Goldberg to have Fox read the script, he didn’t even bother giving it to him. Enter Eric Stoltz.
Because the movie was on a tight 22-week schedule, the editing was taking place alongside the filming process. Once Zemeckis has seen some of the early footage, it was quickly established that Stoltz, although a very competent actor, was just not right as he was was performing the role with an intense and serious tone. Spielberg again approached Goldberg and this time he showed Fox the script and agreed to let him take part in the film as long as Family Ties filming took priority.
