Michael J. Fox: New Show Mirrors Actor’s Real Life Struggles

Michael J. Fox will reportedly play a newscaster recovering from Parkinson’s Disease in a new comedy for NBC. The sitcom is tentatively scheduled to air next fall.

The actor said last year that treatment for the disease had helped him return to acting. According to The Associated Press, the as-of-yet-untitled comedy will take cues from Fox’s real-life struggle with Parkinson’s.

Jennifer Salke, President of NBC Entertainment, explained that the show will follow Fox’s character as he attempts to return to work while raising three boys.

Salke said of the comedy:

“It’s a family show that has him dealing with work and office relationships as well as dealing with kind of his public persona, which is very real. You see, he gets a standing ovation everywhere he shows up, and the idea that he’s sort of been put up on this pedestal by the country and the world, really. He’s just a regular guy, who gets frustrated, who gets mad at having to sit at home.”

The Huffington Post reports that Fox himself pitched the show to the network. Instead of ordering a pilot, NBC decided to go straight to series with the comedy. Salke said that executives were inspired by the idea, especially since it seemed to incorporate so much of Fox’s personal experience with the disease.

The pilot will be written by Arrested Development veteran Say Laybourne. Executive producer Will Gluck will direct.

Although Michael J. Fox appeared on The Good Wife, Boston Legal, and Rescue Me, the actor has starred in a new show since Spin City. Fox’s battle with Parkinson’s Disease forced him to retire from acting in 2001.

NBC will reportedly debut the new comedy somewhere in its Thursday night line-up. The network is quickly lining up shows to replace both The Office and 30 Rock.

Are you looking forward to Michael J. Fox’s new show?