However, the article was quickly deleted, leaving fans confused about the mortality of the Back To The Future star. A spokesperson told TMZ: “The package was published in error; we have removed it from our platforms and send our apologies to Michael J. Fox and his family.” Meanwhile, the actor's representatives confirmed: "Michael is doing great. He was at PaleyFest yesterday. He was on stage and giving interviews." Michael also responded to the claims himself, poking fun at the hoax. Posting on Threads, he joked: "How do you react when you turn on the TV and CNN is reporting your death? Do you…A) switch to MNSBC, or whatever they are calling themselves these days, (B) Pour scolding hot water on your lap, if it hurts your fine, (C) Call your wife, hopefully she’s concerned but reassuring, (D) Relax, they do this once every year, (E) Ask yourself wtf?

"I thought the world was ending, but apparently it’s just me and I’m ok. Love, Mike."

Michael was among Hollywood's most sought-after talents during the 1980s and 1990s, earning three Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award for his role in Family Ties.

He subsequently appeared in 10 feature films, including The Secret of My Success and Casualties of War, alongside the legendary Back to the Future trilogy. Yet while filming the hit comedy Doc Hollywood in 1991, Michael noticed a faint tremor in one of his fingers.

Having endured numerous related health complications, he told the Sunday Times: "In a three-year period I broke my elbow, I broke my hand, I got a big infection in my hand and I almost lost my finger."

Unlike other illnesses, Parkinson's offers no clear timeline but it has left Michael thinking about his mortality. "I'd like to just not wake up one day," he said previously. "That'd be really cool."

For several years, Michael kept his diagnosis firmly under wraps, continuing to appear in films such as For Love or Money, The American President, and Frighteners.

However, during production of the third series of political sitcom Spin City, he came to the realisation that he could no longer conceal his condition. He made the decision to step away from acting for good.

In his book No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality, he wrote: "Not being able to speak reliably is a game-breaker for an actor".