Michael J. Fox has revealed that he feared a backlash over his Curb Your Enthusiasm cameo, in which the show made jokes about his Parkinson’s disease.
The actor spoke to Esquire, in comments reported by PEOPLE. Fox recalled telling series creator Larry David, “No, they’ll crucify us. They’re gonna kill us if we do this.”
David’s reply was: “Oh, OK, well.”
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Fox said the danger of being cancelled actually made the idea more appealing to him, and he described the shoot as “a great time.”
The cameo came in season eight, released in 2011.
Fox plays a version of himself as David’s upstairs neighbour. David accuses him of stomping around, and Fox explains that Parkinson’s causes foot cramps that require him to wear stiff boots.
Despite his early worries, the episode went down well with viewers.
Fox said people “really loved it” and described it as a breakthrough in bringing audiences into the Parkinson’s perspective.
Fox was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s in 1991, at the age of 29, after noticing a tremor in his little finger while filming Doc Hollywood.
He revealed his diagnosis publicly in 1998 and launched the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research in 2000.
