Michael J. Fox Says His BACK TO THE FUTURE Recasting “Inadvertently” Cost Melora Hardin Her Role

Fans of Back to the Future know the story of Eric Stoltz being replaced by Michael J. Fox during production, but Fox’s new memoir sheds light on another major casting change that almost no one outside the set knew about.

It turns out Melora Hardin, who had originally been cast as Marty McFly’s girlfriend Jennifer Parker, lost the role because of Fox’s height, and Fox is now openly reflecting on how that happened.

In his memoir Future Boy, the actor breaks down how something as simple as height became a deciding factor during the chaotic mid production shift. He explains the insecurity he carried growing up and how it unexpectedly played into Hardin being recast.

Fox writes, “My goal as a child was self preservation. Bullies often ridiculed my height, an easy target. I suffered the indignity of short jokes and prejudice against my smallness,” noting that being smaller “worked in my favor when I was a teenage actor playing a younger kid, but it turned against me as an adult, when I went up for romantic leads opposite taller actresses.”

He goes on to reveal how this issue directly impacted Hardin’s job once he stepped in for Stoltz. “I regret that this prejudice inadvertently affected another cast member in Back to the Future, Melora Hardin, the talented actress who had played Marty’s girlfriend, Jennifer, opposite the perfectly tall Eric Stoltz.”

According to Fox, the height difference became a sticking point almost immediately. “Melora, several inches taller than me, was replaced in the movie after I took over as Marty,” he shares.

“Initially, Bob Zemeckis thought perhaps the audience could look past our height difference, but when he quickly surveyed the female members of the crew, they assured him that the tall pretty girl in high school rarely picks the cute short guy.”

Fox adds that he would have stepped in if he had been asked for input at the time. “No one asked for my opinion, but I would have risen to Melora’s defense.”

Once Hardin was let go, Claudia Wells was brought in to play Jennifer for the 1985 classic. When scheduling conflicts kept Wells from returning, Elisabeth Shue stepped into the role for Back to the Future Part II and Part III.

With Fox sharing more personal reflections in his memoir, we are getting a rare look at the very human stories behind one of the most beloved sci-fi films ever made.