The Office Star Who Was Fired From a Major Movie Role Because Michael J. Fox is Short

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“Back to the Future” is the definition of classic cinema. In short, it is one of the best films ever made – one that also led to an entire trilogy – and leaves behind a lasting legacy. As such, it would have been difficult for any actor to miss out on a role in the film, but that’s precisely what happened to Melora Hardin, better known today as Jan Levinson from “The Office.”

Early in her career, Hardin actually starred as Jennifer Parker, the girlfriend of Michael J. Fox’s Marty McFly in director Robert Zemeckis’ sci-fi classic. However, when Eric Stoltz was fired from the role of Marty and replaced by Fox after weeks of filming, this threw the production into chaos. As a result, Hardin was replaced by Claudia Wells. But why? Well, because it was too big.

“My goal as a child was to preserve myself. Bullies often ridiculed my height, an easy target. I suffered the indignity of short jokes and prejudice against my shortness,” as Fox wrote in “Future Boy,” a book about the making of the film (via Weekly Entertainment.) Continuing, he explained how this in part led to Wells, a smaller actor, replacing Hardin in the 1985 hit:

“I regret that this bias inadvertently affected another member of the ‘Back to the Future’ cast — Melora Hardin, the talented actress who played Marty’s girlfriend, Jennifer, opposite the perfectly tall Eric Stoltz. Melora, several inches taller than me, was replaced in the film after I took over the role of Marty. The school rarely chooses the cute little boy.”

“Back to the Future” would become one of the biggest hits of the 1980s.. Most recently, Hardin spoke with Weekly Entertainment about losing the role. The actor revealed that it was very hard, which brought tears to the eyes at the time:

“‘Back to the Future’ was a huge disappointment. I was 17, you know. I burst into tears. It was very sad. There’s quite a few that I remember, you know, things that never really got made. But that I remember being very hard.”

Hardin also explained that “it was apparently the two female executives at the time who thought it was emasculating for their lead male character to be in scenes with a woman taller than him.” She seemed to have a good attitude about it, while adding, “If I had, I’m sure everything would have happened a different way. I wouldn’t have done ‘The Office’.”

Jan was part of one of the best episodes of “The Office”, namely “Dinner Party”, and a staple of the show throughout its run. It is one of the most beloved sitcoms of all time. Also speaking to EW, she said that in her eyes, failure is part of success when it comes to an acting career:

“You must have failed more than you have succeeded. I think people don’t realize that when they look at things from the outside, you really have to be someone who is comfortable with failure and putting yourself in harm’s way all the time. That failure doesn’t mean anything to you. You just have to fail better and keep failing better.”

You can grab the “Back to the Future” trilogy in 4K or Blu-ray on Amazon.