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Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Yes. Michael J. Fox later wrote that he briefly lost consciousness while filming Marty McFly’s hanging scene in Back to the Future Part III. He said the rope compressed his neck and left him suspended unconscious for several seconds before director Robert Zemeckis realized something was wrong. The detailed account comes from Fox’s memoir, Lucky Man: A Memoir, rather than a contemporaneous production report.
What happened during the hanging-scene take?
In the scene, Buford Tannen’s gang hangs Marty. Fox’s memoir account, reproduced by VICE, says Fox performed the close-up himself, although stunt double Charlie Croughwell was available for other material.
Fox wrote that he stood on a small wooden box for the first two takes because his full body was outside the frame. Wanting the swing to look convincing, he tried a take without the box. On the third go-round, he mispositioned his hand beneath the rope. He later said the rope blocked his carotid artery and caused him to pass out. Fox recalled swinging unconscious at the end of the rope for several seconds before Zemeckis recognized that it was a real emergency.
As Fox put it in the memoir: “I swung, unconscious at the end of the rope for several seconds before Bob Zemeckis, fan of mine though he was, realized even I wasn’t that good an actor.” VICE reproduced the passage in its January 22, 2026 account; Fox News also quoted Fox’s description of briefly passing out when the rope blocked his carotid artery.
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What is established—and what is not?
The account supports saying that Fox nearly died in the ordinary sense that a dangerous accident briefly left him unconscious while suspended. It does not establish that he was declared medically dead, that he suffered lasting injury from the incident, or that a medical record or official accident report documented it. The detailed description is Fox’s retrospective account in Lucky Man, not an independently documented production report.
The distinction between the scene and the accident matters: in the film, Doc rescues Marty; in Fox’s account of filming, the rope incident was real and Zemeckis eventually recognized the danger. The official Part III production notes provide production context but do not independently document this accident. The official film page identifies the movie as a 1990 release directed by Zemeckis.
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Did the rope accident cause Fox’s Parkinson’s?
There is no evidence in these accounts that it did. Fox later wondered whether a finger symptom might be connected to the rope accident, but that was his suspicion, not an established medical explanation. A 2009 Guardian interview reports that tests led to his early-onset Parkinson’s diagnosis nearly a year after the symptom appeared. The timing and Fox’s speculation do not establish that the filming accident caused Parkinson’s.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where does the account come from?
The most detailed description comes from Fox’s memoir, Lucky Man: A Memoir (2002), as passages were later reproduced by VICE and Fox News. The official Back to the Future biography of Fox and the film’s production notes offer background, but the reviewed official material does not independently confirm the hanging-scene accident. That is why the event is best described as Fox’s account.
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- Number of Tracks: 0
- Playback Duration: 116
- Rating: PG
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