STILL Director Davis Guggenheim Reveals Michael J. Fox's One Request For The Documentary (Exclusive)

The triumph through tragedy that is Michael J. Fox's life is chronicled in Davis Guggenheim's latest documentary. STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie tells the story of the Back to the Future star's early acting career up to the present day, highlighting Fox's years as Hollywood's heartthrob up to his battle with Parkinson's disease. For anyone who has kept up with Fox in recent memory, it is well documented that the 61-year-old rarely shows face without a smile or a positive attitude. As displayed in STILL, that demeanor is not a front for the cameras, as Fox truly goes through life by embracing the hand he has been dealt.

It was important to Fox that his story was reflective of his attitude towards life as well. Speaking to ComicBook.com, STILL director Davis Guggenheim revealed that Fox's lone ask for the documentary was that the sound avoided invoking emotions of pity, as he wanted the score to uplift audiences.

"He was all in. He was like, 'Oh, this is such a good idea.' And he just said, 'I only have one request for you. No violin. No sad music,'" Guggenheim said. "He doesn't want make a movie about a guy with a handicap and everyone feels sorry for him. That that's the opposite of what he wanted."

The sound can be attributed to composer John Powell. Powell has a number of blockbuster credits to his name, including How to Train Your Dragon and the Bourne trilogy, but STILL represents his first documentary.

"When I pitched this idea to Apple, I was like, 'I want to make a movie that feels like an 80s movie. I want to take people on a wild ride,'" Guggenheim recalled. "Let's have big music like Beastie Boys and Guns N' Roses, and let's get a Hollywood composer to do this score. It's a big departure from the way a lot of scores are in documentaries. A lot of scores and documentaries are very restrained and neutral because they're just feeling like you can't push the audience into an emotional place because you're actually telling a real story. But I said, 'Screw that.'"

STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie is now streaming on Apple TV+.