Half The Cast Was Fired.....

...but it still became the highest grossing film of 1985.

Back To The Future

Released in July of 1985, this time travel adventure was the start of a film franchise but when principle photography began, few would have imagined the film would even be completed. The producers had been unable to find a studio to make the film until a trade between Columbia Pictures and Universal Pictures was negotiated. The original lead actor couldn't take the part because he was busy filming a tv show so Eric Stoltz was hired.

It didn't take long for producers to see that Eric, a highly regarded dramatic actor, was not suited to the light comedy of the film so they fired him and went back to the original actor they wanted for the film...

..Michael J. Fox.

Below is a comparison of the two actors working on the same scene.

Now, the problem with switching actors, one of which is nearly 6' tall and one that is 5' 5" tall, means that Marty's girlfriend is now much taller than him and the bully is now much, much taller than him. As a result, nearly the entire cast had to be let go so that the difference between Eric and Michael's height wouldn't be noticed. Christopher Lloyd, who played Doc Brown, had to hunch over in all his scenes with Michael.

The film introduced us to the coolest time-travel machine ever.

Most time-travel machines had been a box, a buggy, a chair!.....but here was a stainless steel car. And it was nuclear powered. Finally an 80's movie that had a nuclear element that wasn't the destruction of all humanity. Plus you needed to get the car up to 88 miles per hour to make it work. Any time I get close to 88 MPH in a car, I'm always tempted to say "Flux capacitor....fluxing". Still cool all these years later.

The film was so popular that it sparked two sequels which continued the story of Marty trying to get his world put back to normal. But do we really think any of this is normal? Its been reported that when President Reagan screened the film at the White House, he had the projectionist roll the film back and replay the part where a joke was made about Reagan, an actor, being President in the future, he apparently laughed loudly at the scene.

Please go and watch this film but don't call me chicken.