The actress who played the mother to Michael J. Fox’s Marty in the Back to the Future movies has been a mother in real life for years.
One of her daughters has walked in her footsteps in more ways than one.
Originally a ballet dancer in her home state of Minnesota, Lea Thompson eventually made a choice. Wanting more excitement, she ventured to Hollywood and earned a role on 1983’s Jaws 3-D. The rest was history.
Her role in the thriller skyrocketed the young actress to fame. She landed a variety of roles, the most notable of which was as Marty McFly’s mother, Lorraine, in the Back to the Future franchise. Later, she worked often in television and as a director.
During her film career, Thompson had an opportunity to act in Some Kind of Wonderful.
The film’s director, Howard Deutch, and Lea built a rapport and friendship. After the film ended, the two began seeing each other, eventually leading to marriage and two beautiful daughters: Madelyn Deutch (1991) and Zoey Deutch (1994).
Zoey, the pair’s youngest, decided to follow a path paved by her mother. As an actress, Zoey has proven to be her mother’s doppelganger in both looks and talent.
Both women share strawberry blonde hair, fair skin, and distinct facial features that make them look like the same person in two different stages of life. Zoey strongly resembles her mother at the same age, and many people have noticed.
One Twitter user remarked on the astounding similarities in both women in a birthday tweet for the actress:
“Happy Birthday to you, Zoey Deutch! You are a perfect copy of your mother Lea Thompson”
In a one-on-one interview, the mother and daughter illustrated how much they care for one another as they discussed a variety of topics. When Zoey asked her mother how she remains looking so youthful and attractive, Lea linked her attributes to a combination of genetics and “clean living.”
Ironically, it’s possible that Zoey may have never existed if not for her father’s persistence. Howard had offered Lea the role for “Some Kind of Wonderful,” but the star had turned it down at first.
Howard could not be deterred. He continued asking her to star in his film, and the actress finally agreed in 1986 after another of her film’s, Howard the Duck, failed at the box office. The two fell in love during and after filming and are still together to this day.
The film was successful, and Howard could not have been more pleased with his future wife’s work on it. He has openly admitted that he does not think his film would have been nearly as successful without Lea’s casting and acting.
He shared:
“She had a lot to do, as far as I’m concerned, with the tone changing of that movie as well as some of the other casting. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”
And for more than one reason! Howard and Lea have now been married for over 30 years and have raised two beautiful, loving daughters together.
We so admire Lea’s marriage and how she has raised her lovely daughters. It’s always nice to see a daughter who enjoys emulating her mother in so many ways!
Let us know if you agree in the comments!
