‘Back To The Future’ Turns 40: A Time-Traveling Flashback

Back to the Future, starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd, opened in theaters on this day in 1985. It dominated the box office, holding the number one spot for 11 of its first 12 weeks (remaining in the top 10 for 24 weeks). And today we celebrate 40 years since we were introduced to Fox as Marty McFly, a teenager accidentally sent back to 1955 in a time-traveling DeLorean built by his eccentric scientist friend, Emmett “Doc” Brown (Lloyd). There, Marty inadvertently prevents his future parents from falling in love – threatening his own existence – and must find a way to reconcile them and somehow get back to the future.

With a worldwide box office total of $381.1 million during its initial run, Back to the Future was the highest-grossing film of 1985 globally. Its massive success led to two sequels – Back to the Future Part II in 1989 and Back to the Future Part III in 1990. The franchise expanded further with Back to the Future: The Animated Series, which aired on CBS Saturday mornings from September 14, 1991, to December 26, 1992. In 2015, Doc Brown Saves the World, a direct-to-video short film, featured Christopher Lloyd reprising his role as Emmett Brown. It also inspired Back to the Future: The Ride, an attraction featured at several Universal theme park locations. And of course, there’s no shortage of merchandise—from t-shirts, jackets, and caps to coffee mugs, die-cast DeLoreans, and replica license plates.

Additionally, Back to the Future: The Musical premiered in February 2020, with previews at the Manchester Opera House in Manchester, England. Its run was delayed due to the pandemic but eventually made its West End debut at London’s Adelphi Theatre in September 2021. The musical then made its Broadway debut at the Winter Garden Theatre in New York City in August 2023.

In honor of four decades, here are 10 fun factoids about Back to the Future.

1) Eric Stoltz was originally cast as Marty McFly, but his more intense, dramatic approach to the role reportedly clashed with the film’s comedic tone – and with the vision of director Robert Zemeckis. Although Michael J. Fox was the filmmakers’ first choice, Stoltz was initially cast due to Fox’s commitment to the sitcom Family Ties.

Ironically, that same year, Stoltz gained widespread recognition for his dramatic performance as Rocky Dennis opposite Cher in Mask, earning him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture.

2) While filming Back to the Future, Michael J. Fox worked on Family Ties during the day, then headed straight to the Back to the Future set to shoot through the night – often running on just a few hours of sleep.

3) Other actors in contention to play Marty McFly included C. Thomas Howell, John Cusack, Andrew McCarthy, and Ben Stiller.

4) Back to the Future was almost titled Space Man from Pluto at the request of Sidney Sheinberg, then head of Universal Studios. However, Steven Spielberg intervened, and the title was ultimately rejected.

5) The car that Fox as Marty McFly uses to travel back in time is the now-iconic DeLorean. However, in early drafts of the script, the time machine wasn’t a car at all. Originally, it was envisioned as a time chamber – a stationary room Marty would enter to be zapped into the past. That idea later evolved into a 1950s-style refrigerator that Marty would climb into, which would then serve as the vehicle for time travel. Robert Zemeckis and producer Steven Spielberg eventually scrapped the refrigerator concept over concerns that children might imitate the scene and accidentally trap themselves in real refrigerators.

6) Back to the Future featured the hit pop song The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and the News, which reached number one in several countries around the world. In a memorable scene where Marty’s band – The Pinheads – auditions for a high school Battle of the Bands, Huey Lewis himself makes a cameo as the schoolteacher who cuts the performance short, declaring it “just too darn loud.”

7) Lea Thompson has to play Lorraine Baines McFly, Marty’s mother in 1955, 1985, and in alternate timelines in Back to the Future, Part II. To convincingly portray Lorraine across decades, Thompson spent hours in the makeup chair, especially for the older 1985 version. She was the same age as Michael J. Fox, 23, when she filmed Back to the Future.

8) Back to the Future was up for four Academy Awards. While it lost for Best Original Song, Best Sound, and Best Original Screenplay, it won for Best Sound Effects Editing.

9) Billy Zane (Titanic) made his film debut in Back to the Future as Match, one of Biff Tannen’s (Tom Wilson) cronies.

10) Disney originally passed on producing Back to the Future, largely due to the storyline in which a teenage Marty McFly travels back in time and inadvertently causes his mother to fall in love with him, not knowing he’s her future son. Disney executives reportedly felt this subplot was inappropriate for the family-friendly image the studio was known for.

Steven Spielberg’s involvement helped secure the greenlight from Universal, and the film went on to become one of the most iconic and successful sci-fi comedies in movie history.

Forty years later, we remember Back to the Future!