Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson Reunite With 'Back to the Future' Cast
Great Scott! Marty McFly and his pals are back in the future — this time without the DeLorean.
Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, and Lea Thompson joined together with several of their Back to the Future supporting players for a 30th anniversary cast reunion Sunday at London’s Film & Comic Con.
Photos: ‘Back to the Future’ DeLorean From Sketch to Screen
The trio had been in London since Friday to celebrate the anniversary of the original film (which came out July 3, 1985) and announce the re-release of the trilogy in theaters on Oct. 21 and a special-edition DVD/Blu-ray that same week. On Sunday, the erstwhile Marty McFly, Doc Brown, and Lorraine Baines McFly took the stage with several former cast mates from the Robert Zemeckis-helmed films.
Those in attendance included Claudia Wells (Marty’s girlfriend Jennifer Parker), James Tolkan (the school principal Mr. Strickland), Harry Waters Jr. (bandleader Marvin Berry), Donald Fullilove (aspiring politician Goldie Wilson), Marc McClure (Marty’s brother, Dave), Jeffrey Weissman (Cripsin Glover’s replacement as George McFly in the two sequels), Ricky Dean Logan (who played Data in Part II and a Needles gang member in Part III), and Frances Lee McCain (Lorraine’s mom, Stella Baines).
Between the panel and an earlier press conference, the stars reminisced on the making of the film and their enduring appeal. Fox talked about coming in as a last-minute replacement for Eric Stoltz. Lloyd remembered the strong relationship he struck up with Fox both on and off-screen. And Thompson recalled the most memorable scene she worked on: the prom-night make-out scene in the car with Marty, where she’s attacked by Biff and rescued by George.
Related: 7 Amazing Fun Facts About Making of ‘Back to the Future’
“That whole sequence was really important… I remember how nervous Bob Z. [Zemeckis] was because these were big plot points that we had to sell with acting,” Thompson said. “And I got to kiss Michael, so that was good times!”
(Thomas Wilson, who played Biff, Crispin Glover, who was the original George, and Zemeckis did not attend the reunion.)
Fox revealed that he really hated the DeLorean that served as his speed-demon time machine, and was custom-built to fit the taller Stoltz. “It was the worst thing to drive. It had two gears and I slammed the door, and my hand would smash into the flux capacitor,” he remembered. “The money it would take to get me back into the DeLorean again is a LOT.” He also fielded the inevitable question about how well the films predicted the future.
Related: How Accurate Was ‘Back to the Future’ Tech?
“One thing the movie got completely right was my receding hairline,” joked Fox. “It nailed that. Unfortunately.”
Fox, Lloyd, and Thompson reunite at ‘Back to the Future’ press conference:
