Back to the Future is a cinematic classic, with the '80s film and its sequels being the premiere family blockbuster series. Cementing Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd as stars, the movie is tremendously influential. From blockbusters to shows like Rick & Morty (which actually began as a parody of Back to the Future), the film's magic is simply timeless. However, it almost didn't happen, and it would have all been Doc Brown's fault.
Christopher Lloyd was initially unsure of Back to the Future as a concept, to the point where he actually discarded and disregarded the script. Nevertheless, he eventually got on board the DeLorean, and the rest is cinematic history. Among the franchise's other little-known trivia, here's how Emmett Brown almost never met Fox's Marty.
Christopher Lloyd Threw Away the Back to the Future Script
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Before Back to the Future, Lloyd was an actor who mainly performed on the stage. And that dramatic lifestyle had been calling him back, which is part of why he was so ambivalent on taking part in the time-traveling comedy. Lloyd had perused the movie's script, but the material certainly didn't speak to him. As he stated to Al Roker, "I went through it. I just wasn’t into it," he said. "I put it in the wastepaper basket."
Still, something about it compelled him, so he pulled it out of the trash -- and he still wasn't thrilled. But that didn't keep him from meeting with Robert Zemeckis, a move that finally cemented his part in the movie. It's odd that, despite how the fun he had, Lloyd was so uninterested in Back to the Future at the beginning. Though some ardent fans may be scratching their heads at this, the movie's development may help explain this ambivalence.
Back to the Future Was Originally Quite Different
It's likely that the script for Back to the Future that Christopher Lloyd got introduced to wasn't the final version. After all, there are several changes from what was initially in the script and what appeared on the screen. For instance, the iconic time-traveling DeLorean originally wasn't a car but a refrigerator. The filmmakers also thought Doc Brown should be a wise old sage, but Lloyd had different ideas. And it was his input that had Brown act as a bubbly, almost manic scientist, mad in everything but morality. Given that Lloyd was behind this iconic characterization, it just goes to show how much of what made Back to the Future work wasn't even in the script.
Even the original planned ending didn't make the cut, making so much of the series almost apocryphal. Thankfully, Lloyd's input and other changes got implemented into the theatrical version of Back to the Future, and the result was the classic that audiences are familiar with. The movie is now almost 40 years old, and it's unlikely that anyone involved would change the cinematic future that it built. From notable lines to posters and futuristic tennis shoes, Back to the Future is undoubtedly one of the highlights of its era.