You might know Lea Thompson best as Marty McFly's mother in Back to the Future, but the actress has raised just as talented kids offscreen. She and husband Howard Deutch largely made the '80s what it was, both contributing their skills to the 1987 hit Some Kind of Wonderful.
But despite their significant star power, their two daughters have arguably sped past their parents on the celebrity ranking, from co-starring with Glen Powell on Set it Up to leading the way in 2010s favourite Vampire Academy.
© Getty ImagesHoward is responsible for some of the '80s biggest feature films
Husband Howard Deutch
Howard Deutch is an American director with some impressive credits to his name including iconic Molly Ringwald coming-of-age feature Pretty in Pink (1986). His other notable hits include Some Kind of Wonderful (1987), The Great Outdoors (1988) and more.
The director was born on 14 September 1950 in New York. He is a father of two daughters, who he shares with wife Lea.
© Getty ImagesMadelyn is the elder daughter of Lea and husband Howard, and is now a mother herself
Madelyn Deutch
Like her sister and mother, Madelyn has found success in front of the camera. Born March 23, 1991, the actress and songwriter first appeared in 2009's Mayor Cupcake. Her best known roles include The Year of Spectacular Men (2017), TV series Outcast and 2015 mini series Texas Rising.
She married TV literary agent Zach Carlisle in June 2023 and the couple welcomed daughter Robbie June on 2 Feb 2025.
© WireImageZoey Deutch is a familiar face for kids who came of age in the mid 2010s
Zoey Deutch
Zoey Deutch was born on 10 November 1994 and has worked as an actress for 15 years. She's starred opposite Glen Powell in Set It Up, brought Rose Hathaway to the screen in Vampire Academy (2014) and starred with James Franco in Why Him?.
More recent roles include Something from Tiffany's, Anniversary and acclaimed French New Wave docudrama Nouvelle Vague (2025). She's currently engaged to comedian and actor Jimmy Tatro.
© WireImageLea was a huge name in the 1980s and has continued to be cast in feature roles
Lea's 1980s stardom
Lea Thompson was one of the 1980s biggest names starring in Oscar-winning film Back to the Future (1985), its sequel Back to the Future II (1989) and Some Kind of Wonderful (1987). During the '90s she starred as Caroline Duffy in Caroline in the City (1995-99).
One of her major roles into the 2000s was as Kathryn Kennish in Switched at Birth between 2011 and 2017. She appears in every episode of the beloved series which follows teens Bay and Daphne who discover they were, well, switched at birth.
© Variety via Getty ImagesLea's still busy onscreen and doesn't show any signs of hanging up her acting hat any time soon
What's she doing now
Lea is still acting and recently appeared in The Chicken Sisters, starred in The Spencer Sisters and guested on The Goldbergs.
According to IMDb, she'll soon be returning to the realm of birth-switching tots in What If which follows Marley's journey to find out what family means after discovering she was swapped at birth.
