Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Back to the Future Day 2017: 3 Fast Facts

Back to the Future Day 2017: 3 Fast Facts

October 21 is "Back to the Future Day." It was first celebrated 2 years ago because in "Back to the Future Part II," Marty McFly travels to October 21, 2015. Here are 3 time traveling fast facts:


1. Michael J. Fox Was, Then Wasn't... Then Was Marty McFly

Director Robert Zemeckis originally wanted Michael J. Fox for the lead role of Marty McFly, but the young actor declined because he was too busy playing Alex Keaton on Family Ties. After Johnny Depp, John Cusack, and Ralph Macchio tried out for the part, Eric Stoltz was cast.

But after more than 5 weeks of shooting the film, Zemeckis and co-writer Bob Gale admitted that Stoltz’s style of comedyjust wasn’t working for the script. More of a method and cerebral actor, Stoltz just couldn’t do physical comedy they were looking for to match the tone of their script.

Stoltz was paid off to exit the film, and after negotiations with the producers of Family Ties, including a work schedule from hell, Fox signed on and reshot Stoltz’s scenes. It was later discovered that actor Christopher Lloyd, who played Doc Brown, had never learned Eric’s real name. He had always referred to him as “Marty” on set.

But Stoltz’s McFly lives on in an alternative universe, as imagined by the science fiction series Fringe.


2. Doc Brown’s Time Machine Was a Refrigerator

In previous drafts of the script, the mad scientist’s time machine was originally a “time chamber” made from a refrigerator, which at one point in the script was meant to protect McFly from a nuclear blast. Fortunately, that idea was nixed. Unfortunately, it was later used by Steven Spielberg in the fourth Indiana Jones film.

Zemeckis and Gale eventually decided on the DeLorean car because of its strange, futuristic look. Only 9000 cars were ever manufactured before production ended in 1982.

And if you know the film by heart, you remember that the car needed to accelerate to 88 miles per hour in order for the time-flux capacitor to achieve time travel capability. The reason behind that specific number had nothing to do with math or science, and everything to do with the production designers thinking “88” looked cool on the digital speedometer.


3. The Film Was Almost “Spaceman from Pluto”

Universal Studios executive Sid Sheinberg was not a man of risks, and was concerned by the poor box-office performances of time travel movies Time Bandits, Somewhere in Time, and The Final Countdown. He suggested the alternative title “Spaceman from Pluto,” based on a payoff punchline in the film.

Fortunately, executive producer Spielberg killed that idea, according to Empire. Sheinberg did manage to make one significant change: switching Doc Brown’s animal companion, Einstein, from a chimpanzee to a sheepdog. He believed no movie with a monkey had ever been financially successful.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

More from News

person lying on bed reading book
Dessidre Fleming on Unsplash

People Who Sleep Naked Describe The Times It Backfired—And Oof

I make it a habit to travel with nice pajamas that I don't mind having other people see.

One reason why is because years ago on a business trip to St. Louis, Missouri, one of the other hotels near where we were staying had a minor fire in the middle of the night.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kate Shaw; Josh Hawley
C-SPAN

Law Professor Bluntly Debunks Hawley's Conspiracy About Why Number Of Trump Injunctions Is So High

On Tuesday, Kate Shaw, law professor at the University of Pennsylvania, testified before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on the role of the federal court system.

The Republican majority focused primarily on federal judges issuing nationwide injunctions that block the unconstitutional executive orders of MAGA Republican President Donald Trump and the Trump administration's illegal or unconstitutional actions.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @joyfullykrisandra's TikTok video
@joyfullykrisandra/TikTok

Mom Slams Bakery's Epic Fail After Ordering $200 Cake For Son's Graduation Party

The time of year has come for major celebrations, especially among families with graduates in their midst.

For those who want to throw a party to celebrate, they have to prepare one of the central features: a cake.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @tallertoddlers' TikTok video
@tallertoddlers/TikTok

Woman Horrified After Accidentally Shattering Roommate's $249 Louis Vuitton Chocolate Purse

There are a few "roommate etiquette" rules we should all be able to agree to: don't use or take something that doesn't belong to you, at least without asking; don't eat your roommate's food; and honestly, don't touch their food, especially with your bare hands.

A leading rule, however, should be: If you break something that belongs to your roommate, you should replace it.

Keep ReadingShow less
Patrick Renna in 'The Sandlot'; Patrick Renna stepping up to bat with the Savannah Bananas
20th Century Fox; @thesavbananas/TikTok

'The Sandlot' Star Surprises Baseball Fans By Stepping Up To Bat At Savannah Bananas Game

Millennials everywhere who weren't at a recent Savannah Bananas game will be sent into a nostalgic spiral when they see the video of Patrick Renna, better known as Ham Porter or "The Great Hambino" in the 1993 film The Sandlot, stepping up to bat.

The Savannah Bananas provide the perfect interactive baseball game experience for fans and families, and inviting well-known personalities is just part of their repertoire.

Keep ReadingShow less