You have probably heard the name Fox in Hollywood many times. But today, we are not talking about Michael J. Fox. We are talking about his talented sister, Kelli Fox. She is a Canadian actress, theatre director and award winner who has been working in the entertainment world for over 35 years.
Most people know her famous brother from Back to the Future. But Kelli Fox has built her own strong career on her own terms. She has appeared in big movies and TV shows. She has worked on some of the best theatre stages in Canada. And she has won awards for her directing work too.
So, who is Kelli Fox really? Let’s find out.
Early Life and Family Background
Kelli Fox was born in 1964 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She is the eldest of five children in the Fox family. Her siblings are Michael J. Fox, Karen Fox, Jacki Fox and Steven Fox.
Their father, William Fox, was a sergeant in the Canadian Army and later worked as a police dispatcher. Their mother, Phyllis Piper, worked as a payroll clerk and also had a connection to acting. The family moved around a lot during Kelli’s childhood because of their father’s military career. They finally settled in Burnaby, British Columbia, when William retired.
Growing up in a big family taught Kelli many things. She and Michael were close, and they supported each other’s dreams from a young age. While Michael left for Los Angeles at 18 to chase his Hollywood dreams, Kelli stayed in Canada and found her own path in acting.
How Kelli Fox Started Her Acting Career
Kelli’s love for acting started in high school. From her first moment on stage, she knew this was what she wanted to do. She has said that a teacher at her school had connections to professional theatre in Vancouver. That connection helped open the first door for her.
After high school, Kelli Fox attended Studio 58 in Vancouver. This is one of Canada’s best theatre training schools. Many top Canadian performers have come from this program. Her time at Studio 58 was hard work, but it shaped her skills and her way of thinking about performance.
One of her early big moments was playing the role of Keely in a play called Keely and Du. This was a co-production between Canadian Stage and the Arts Club, and it was directed by Janet Wright. For this role, Kelli won a Jessie Award, which is a well-known theatre award in British Columbia.
Kelli Fox in Movies and Television
While Kelli Fox is best known for her theatre work, she has also appeared in several popular movies and TV shows.
Her most recognized film role is in Timecop (1994), a science fiction action movie starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. She also appeared in Double, Double Toil and Trouble (1993) and Moonlight and Valentino (1995).
On television, Kelli had roles in some very popular shows. She appeared in The X Files (1993), one of the biggest sci-fi TV series of the 1990s. She also worked on The Commish (1991), a comedy drama TV series. More recently, she appeared in The Good Doctor, a medical drama that many people around the world enjoy. She also had a role in Murdoch Mysteries, a beloved Canadian TV show.
An interesting fact about Kelli is that she often plays nurses or other medical professionals on TV. This has become a bit of a pattern in her screen career.
Kelli Fox and the Shaw Festival
If you want to understand Kelli Fox’s true home in the arts, you need to look at her theatre career. And the biggest part of that career is her work at the Shaw Festival.
The Shaw Festival is one of Canada’s most important theatre festivals. It takes place in Niagara on the Lake, Ontario. Kelli worked there for an impressive 13 seasons. This is where she became well known in the Canadian theatre world.
Getting to the Shaw Festival was not easy. Kelli has said that it took her the first ten years of her career to get there. She set it as her goal after visiting the festival in the late 1980s. She saw the work being done and told herself she needed to be part of it. She worked very hard to make that happen, and it paid off.
Besides the Shaw Festival, Kelli also performed for 3 seasons at the Stratford Festival, another one of Canada’s most famous theatre events. She has also worked with other respected companies like Soulpepper, the Globe Theatre in Regina and Canadian Stage in Toronto.
From Actress to Director
After decades of acting, Kelli Fox decided to try something new. She started directing plays. This was a big step, but her long experience as an actress made the change smoother.
In 2016, she won the Gina Wilkinson Prize. This award was created to support women who are moving from acting to directing in the middle of their careers. When Kelli received the award, she said the recognition meant the world to her.
Some of her directing work includes Kitchen Radio at the Blyth Festival, The Drowning Girls at the Globe Theatre in Regina, and Between Riverside and Crazy at Coal Mine Theatre in Toronto. She has also directed shows with the Headstrong Collective, a Toronto indie theatre company.
Kelli once said that she got lucky because she had built enough of a name as an actress that people were willing to give her a chance as a director. But anyone who knows her work would say it was not just luck. It was years of hard work and dedication.
Kelli Fox Becomes Artistic Director
In one of the biggest steps of her career, Kelli Fox was named the Artistic Director of Western Canada Theatre (WCT) in Kamloops, British Columbia. She joined the company as a co-leader alongside Executive Director Matt Eger.
This role gave Kelli the chance to shape the direction of an entire theatre company. With her 35 years of experience as both an actor and a director, she brought a lot of knowledge and energy to the position.
Living in Her Brother’s Shadow? Not Really
One question that comes up often is whether Kelli Fox lives in the shadow of her famous brother, Michael J. Fox. The answer is no.
Kelli has been open about her relationship with Michael. She does not hide the fact that they are siblings, but she does not use it to get ahead either. She once said that being Michael’s sister is just as likely to hurt her career as help it. They have lived and worked in very different worlds. Michael built his career in American television and Hollywood movies. Kelli built hers in Canadian theatre.
Kelli has always wanted to be known for her own work. And she has succeeded. Her 13 seasons at the Shaw Festival, her award winning directing career and her role as Artistic Director of WCT are all things she earned on her own.
She also quietly supports her brother’s efforts to raise awareness and money for Parkinson’s disease research through the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
What Makes Kelli Fox Special
What sets Kelli Fox apart is her deep love for language and storytelling. She has said that her work is always centered on language. Whether she is acting in a play by George Bernard Shaw or directing a modern drama, she cares deeply about the words and the story.
She is also known for being honest and warm. People who have worked with her talk about her strong work ethic, her sense of humor and her ability to bring out the best in other performers.
Even during the COVID 19 pandemic, when theatres closed and many artists lost their income, Kelli stayed positive. She talked openly about how the break gave her time to think but also about how hard it was to go a full year without working.
Final Thoughts
Kelli Fox is not just “Michael J. Fox’s sister.” She is a respected actress with over 35 years of experience. She is a talented director. She is an award winner. And she is someone who has given her life to Canadian theatre.
From her early days in Vancouver to her seasons at the Shaw Festival, from her roles in Timecop and The X Files to her work as Artistic Director of Western Canada Theatre, Kelli Fox has built a career that any performer would be proud of.
If you enjoy good theatre, strong performances and real dedication to the craft, Kelli Fox is a name you should remember.
