Michael J. Fox to scrub up twice for ‘Scrubs’
Michael J. Fox will play an accomplished surgeon on two February episodes of NBC’s Scrubs, a rare on-screen performance for the actor since his departure from the hit sitcom, Spin City, in 2000.
Fox’s episodes, which begin taping this week, mark a reunion with Scrubs executive producer and Spin City veteran Bill Lawrence. Lawrence said Fox, who left Spin City to focus on his battle with Parkinson’s disease, is a fan of the medical comedy and expressed interest in a guest role. A spokeswoman for the actor said Fox is in great health.
“Mike is such a humble guy. He said if it wasn’t something I wanted, not to worry about it. Meanwhile, I was trying not to jump through the phone,” Lawrence said.
Fox’s character is a “superdoc,” a funny, quirky guy with both medical and surgical specialties who inadvertently forces the Scrubs’ physicians ó J.D., Turk and Cox ó to face their own shortcomings.
This doctor also has obsessive-compulsive disorder, but has found a way to make the best of it ó a parallel to Fox’s own dealings with Parkinson’s, which have included creating the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.
Lawrence isn’t the only one excited about the guest appearance by Fox, 42, who has done some voice roles recently: “I had to come up with a way that every actor on the show could get a scene with him or they would kill me.”
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