The cast of Family Ties: Where are they now?

It has been just over 40 years since the classic sitcom Family Ties made its debut on NBC.

The series premiered on September 22, 1982, and it went on to air seven seasons until the spring of 1989.

The series focused on the cultural clash between a pair of ex-hippie parents (Meredith Baxter and Michael Gross) and their children, especially their precocious young conservative son (Michael J. Fox in his breakout role).

Fox went on to become one of the biggest stars in the world with the Back To The Future franchise, while most of the rest of the cast have had varied careers, even as late addition Brian Bonsall has had multiple run-ins with the law in recent years. 

After Justine Bateman recently opened up about her 'old' face and her decision to age naturally to combat Hollywood's habit of endlessly chasing youth, we're taking a look at where the show's main cast are today and how much they've changed over four decades.

The ties that bind: After star Justine Bateman (top center) defended her 'old face' and her natural aging, DailyMail.com looks back at where she and the rest of her Family Ties stars are more than 40 years after the series debuted in 1982, including heartthrob costar Michael J. Fox

Justine Bateman (starred as Mallory Keaton)

New role: Justin Bateman has moved away from acting and turned toward directing in recent years; seen on 60 Minutes Australia in March

Star power: She starred as Mallory Keaton, the oldest daughter who was obsessed with boys and material possession. Bateman earned Emmy and Golden Globe nominations before launching a varied career as a supporting actress

Justin Bateman was featured on Family Ties as the middle child and oldest daughter Mallory Keaton.

While not an all-out conservative like her brother Alex, she was more interested in material possessions and the opposite sex than her lefty parents preferred.

Bateman, 57, earned nominations for Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe, though she didn't win.

The actress, who is the older sister of Arrested Development star Justin Bateman, followed up her run on the hit sitcom with roles in the film Satisfaction and the series Men Behaving Badly, though she primarily worked as a supporting actress going forward.

In 2021, she made her feature directorial debut with the Olivia Munn–starring Violet.

Last month, she spoke to 60 Minutes Australia about realizing that people across the internet had been fascinated by her decision to age naturally without fillers or cosmetic surgeries.

'I think I look rad, I think my face represents who I am. I like it,' she said proudly.

Michael J. Fox (starred as Alex P. Keaton)

Future icon: Michael J. Fox was the breakout star as Young Republican son Alex P. Keaton. The show was quickly retooled to focus on him instead of his former hippie parents; seen January 20 in Park City, Utah

Rising star: While appearing on the show, he starred in the 1985 monster hit Back To The Future. He was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1991, and he turned toward advocacy after going public in 1998

Michael J. Fox is the best known of the former Family Ties cast today, even though he has retired from acting as of 2021.

The film and television star, now 61, has been battling Parkinson's disease since an early diagnosis in 1991, though he didn't reveal his condition until seven years later.

Although Family Ties was originally intended to present the contrast between the old school 'hip' parents and their more 'square' children, Fox's character was such a hit with audiences that the series was quickly retooled to focus on him.

In 1985, while he was still appearing on the series, he replaced Eric Stoltz as Marty McFly in Back To The Future, and the rest was history.

The film was a hit and cemented his star status, while spawning two sequels.

He had a series of other popular and critically acclaimed films that were shot while he was still appearing on Family Ties, which ended in 1989.

He continued to appear in films throughout the 1990s, and he also got into voice acting with roles in the two Homeward Bound movies, three Stuart Little films and Atlantis: The Lost Empire.

Fox starred on Spin City from 1996 to 2000, during which time he publicly revealed his Parkinson's diagnosis.

Afterward, he largely stepped back from film and television, though he has focused more on advocacy for a cure for Parkinson's.

Fox met his future wife Tracy Pollan when she appeared on season four of Family Ties. 

Michael Gross (starred as Steven Keaton) 

Father knows best: Michael Gross played the Keaton family patriarch Steven, who ran a PBS station. After his run on Family Ties, he appeared in all seven Tremors films and a follow-up TV series

Michael Gross starred as Steven, the Keaton family patriarch.

He played an ex-hippy who spent years in California before moving to Ohio with his family and running a local PBS station.

Gross is best known for his role on Family Ties, though he subsequently appeared in the cult horror film Tremors (1990) with Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward, along with six sequels and a TV series, which eventually saw him move up to lead status after the higher-profile stars departed the series.

He has since had numerous roles in film and television, and younger audiences might know him best from guest appearances on the Adult Swim comedy series Tim And Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! and Tim And Eric's Billion Dollar Movie.

Meredith Baxter (starred as Elyse Donnelly Keaton)

Leading lady: Meredith Baxter played Elyse Donnelly Keaton, a former hippie–turned–architect. Baxter came out as a lesbian in 2009

Terrible years: She claimed at the time that her ex-husband David Birney — whom she costarred with on Bridget Loves Bernie — had abused her during their marriage, which he denied; seen in 1982 in Los Angeles

Marriage number three: In 1995, Baxter married the actor Michael Blodgett, until their divorce in 2000; seen in 1998

New love: After coming out in 2009, Baxter later married Nancy Locke; they're pictured in New York City in 2011

Meredith Baxter played the mother of the family, Elyse Donnelly Keaton, who worked as an architect after an earlier life as a California-based hippie.

Like Gross, Baxter's role in the show was quickly downplayed in favor of a focus on Fox's character Alex P. Keaton.

She was already known to audiences for starring in Bridget Loves Bernie — she later married her costar David Birney — and the drama series Family.

She also had a role in the 1976 classic thriller All The President's Men.

Baxter would go on to earn five Emmy nominations with numerous roles in shows and TV movies.

In 1997, she reunited with Fox on Spin City, playing his mother in two episodes.

The actress has been married four times, first to Robert Lewis Bush from 1966–1969. The couple shared two children.

In 1974, she married her Bridget Loves Bernie costar David Birney, a year after the show went off the air. They divorced in 1989.

Her third marriage was to the Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls actor Michael Blodgett from 1995 to 2000. He died in 2007.

Baxter later came out as a lesbian in 2009 during a Today Show interview.

Two years later, she claimed while promoting her memoir that her ex-husband David Birney had abused her during their marriage, though he denied her claims. He died in April of 2022.

Tina Yothers (starred as Jennifer Keaton) 

Child star: Tina Yothers played the youngest child Jennifer, a sporty tom boy who was on the same page as her parents. She acted through the '80s and '90s but hasn't been on screen since a 2013 episode of What Not To Wear

Tina Yothers played Jennifer, the second-youngest child in the Keaton family.

She played an athlete and a tomboy who was more sympathetic to her parents' world-view than those of her older sister and brother.

Yothers began acting when she was just three, and Family Ties became her best-known work, though she continued to act on television throughout the 1980s and '90s.

She later made appearances on reality shows including Celebrity Fit Club, Celebrity Wife Swap.

Her last significant on-screen appearance was in 2013 on What Not To Wear. 

Brian Bonsall (starred as Andy Keaton) 

Career change: Brian Bonsall played youngest son Andy in seasons 5–7. After appearing on Star Trek: The Next Generation and leading the Disney movie Blank Check, he retired from acting and later became a rock musician; seen in 2016 in LA

Legal troubles: He had multiple arrests from 2007 to 2010, including for assault and marijuana use, before seemingly going straight; pictured in a mugshot from the Boulder County Jail from 2009

Brian Bonsall was a late addition to the cast as the youngest Keaton child, Andrew.

The character was played by twin actors as a baby in season four, before he took over the role in seasons five through seven, at which point his character had aged several years.

During his time on the series, Fox's character Alex tried to turn him into an even younger Republican.

Bonsall would later appear on Star Trek: The Next Generation, and he went on to appear with Patrick Swayze in Father Hood.

He also played the lead role in Disney's successful live-action film Blank Check in 1994, and he starred opposite Bob Saget in the TV movie Father and Scout.

Despite playing the lead in a successful film, Bonsall gave up acting a year later in 1995 and moved to Colorado with his parents.

He went on to work in several rock bands starting during his time in high school.

Star studded: In addition to the primary cast, the show featured a recurring role from future Friends star Courteney Cox, and guest roles from Tom Hanks, River Phoenix, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Geena Davis and many others; Bateman, Pollan, Fox, Yothers, Gross and Baxter seen in 2011

Bonsall also had several run-ins with the law in the late 2000s, though he appears to have cleaned up his act in the past decade.

In 2007, he was arrested for assaulting his girlfriend, for which he served two years of probation. He was later accused of violating his probation, and he was arrested again in 2009 for assault. 

In 2010, he was arrested for using marijuana, which violated the terms of his probation. He was then sentenced to two more years of probation for the crime.

Family Ties also featured a recurring performance from future Friends star Courteney Cox in its final two seasons, while other major guests on the show included Tom Hanks, the late River Phoenix, his Stand By Me costars Wil Wheaton and Corey Feldman, Geena Davis, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Christina Applegate, Martha Plimpton, Crispin Glover and Maura Tierney.