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In 1985, a modestly-priced
19-million-dollar movie...
3
00:00:17,392 --> 00:00:18,601
Okay, cut.
4
00:00:18,685 --> 00:00:20,228
...had a rising star.
5
00:00:20,729 --> 00:00:21,956
A time machine...
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Built out of an old refrigerator.
7
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...and a title...
Spaceman from Pluto.
8
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What?
...that nobody liked.
9
00:00:29,571 --> 00:00:32,699
In fact, this movie went on to change...
10
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...well, nothing, because they didn't
make that one, but they nearly did.
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00:00:37,746 --> 00:00:39,414
Look, this is a bit complicated.
12
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Can we go from the top?
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In 1985...
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...a modestly-priced
$19 million movie had a rising star...
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He's charming. He's likable.
16
00:00:54,846 --> 00:00:55,990
...a time machine...
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It looks like a spaceship.
18
00:00:57,223 --> 00:00:59,392
...and a title...
19
00:00:59,476 --> 00:01:00,727
Back to the future!
20
00:01:00,810 --> 00:01:03,438
...that absolutely
everyone loved.
21
00:01:03,521 --> 00:01:05,148
This film is about time.
22
00:01:05,231 --> 00:01:07,525
Despite its box office blowout...
23
00:01:07,609 --> 00:01:09,903
My mother would clip out
how much money it was making.
24
00:01:09,986 --> 00:01:13,323
...and critical acclaim...
It's a roller coaster ride.
25
00:01:13,406 --> 00:01:15,283
...the making of
Back to the Future
26
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seemed destined to fail.
27
00:01:16,951 --> 00:01:19,662
Bob Zemeckis said,
"We're making the wrong movie."
28
00:01:19,746 --> 00:01:22,475
But through the perseverance...
Working seven days a week...
29
00:01:22,499 --> 00:01:23,768
...of a pair of Bobs...
30
00:01:23,792 --> 00:01:27,128
And here we were doing this thing
that you're never supposed to do.
31
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...this film defied the odds.
They're gonna shut us down.
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...and made its own density.
Sorry, that should be "destiny."
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Oh.
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This is the story...
Boom!
35
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...of how a series of decisions...
I think we want to reshoot that.
36
00:01:41,643 --> 00:01:43,603
...good and bad...
You did what?
37
00:01:43,686 --> 00:01:45,772
...blazed a trail
and left its mark...
38
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The biggest lightning bolt
in cinematic history.
39
00:01:50,151 --> 00:01:54,739
...on the careers of everyone
who strapped in, despite the risk.
40
00:01:54,823 --> 00:01:57,951
Liquid nitrogen?
What could possibly go wrong?
41
00:01:59,661 --> 00:02:02,163
You never know what the future will bring.
42
00:02:23,852 --> 00:02:27,147
These are The Movies That Made Us.
43
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Great Scott!
Back to the Future,
44
00:02:32,110 --> 00:02:34,863
the story of a typical 1980s teenager...
45
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McFly, you're a slacker.
46
00:02:36,322 --> 00:02:37,925
...with a pretty sweet ride...
47
00:02:37,949 --> 00:02:40,451
You built a time machine
out of a DeLorean?
48
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...who inadvertently travels
back in time,
49
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where he befriends his dad,
kisses his mum,
50
00:02:46,875 --> 00:02:48,293
he shocks a doc...
51
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...and pretty much everyone else.
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Rock and roll.
53
00:02:54,716 --> 00:02:57,886
For Marty McFly to go...
Back to the future!
54
00:02:57,969 --> 00:03:00,513
...he has to make his parents fall...
Dad!
55
00:03:01,014 --> 00:03:03,850
...in love, to stop himself from being...
56
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Erased from existence.
57
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...and all before he's...
58
00:03:08,271 --> 00:03:09,397
out of time.
59
00:03:09,480 --> 00:03:13,610
But before we set
the flux capacitor for 1985,
60
00:03:13,693 --> 00:03:17,280
and find out just how
this '80s mega-hit was made
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and renamed from...
62
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Professor Brown Visits the Future.
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00:03:20,867 --> 00:03:22,035
We need to go back...
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00:03:22,118 --> 00:03:24,204
November 5th, 1955.
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No, not 1955. Forward a bit, please,
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to the '70s.
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00:03:30,752 --> 00:03:34,672
Specifically, the campus
of the University of Southern California,
68
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to meet two officially graded...
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00:03:36,966 --> 00:03:38,176
B or B-plus.
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00:03:38,259 --> 00:03:41,930
...student moviemakers
named Bob Gale and Bob Zemeckis.
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00:03:42,013 --> 00:03:45,099
Bob wanted to be a director.
I wanted to be a writer.
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But unlike their artsy-fartsy
fellow students...
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We'd hear the graduate students
pontificating about the French New Wave
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and how great the last movie
of Jean-Luc Godard was,
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00:03:55,568 --> 00:03:58,363
and we didn't care anything about that.
76
00:03:59,489 --> 00:04:02,450
We were more interested
in talking about James Bond and...
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00:04:02,533 --> 00:04:03,533
Dirty Harry.
78
00:04:03,576 --> 00:04:07,413
And ultimately, more interested
in making those kinds of movies.
79
00:04:07,497 --> 00:04:08,331
Well, do ya, punk?
80
00:04:08,414 --> 00:04:10,708
Regular movies
that regular people can enjoy.
81
00:04:10,792 --> 00:04:13,044
So when it was time
for their graduate film,
82
00:04:13,127 --> 00:04:14,504
called A Field of Honor...
83
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We were doing these car stunts,
this bus scene, firing automatic weapons...
84
00:04:18,841 --> 00:04:21,094
And with no Godard influences
whatsoever...
85
00:04:21,177 --> 00:04:23,930
Hey!
...student director Zemeckis went big.
86
00:04:24,013 --> 00:04:28,184
Bob might have only got a B
or B-plus on it. It wasn't...
87
00:04:28,268 --> 00:04:30,144
serious enough, I guess, or whatever.
88
00:04:30,228 --> 00:04:33,398
But as new graduates,
it was now time to get serious.
89
00:04:33,481 --> 00:04:36,234
We just wanted to get out of school,
start making movies.
90
00:04:36,317 --> 00:04:37,917
Keeping their ambition alive,
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00:04:37,944 --> 00:04:40,822
the Bobs stayed afloat
by working in television,
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00:04:40,905 --> 00:04:44,659
whilst toiling away
on their first movie script called 1941,
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00:04:44,742 --> 00:04:48,329
which they pitched to literally anyone
in town who would listen.
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00:04:48,413 --> 00:04:51,165
Our agent got us a meeting
with John Milius...
95
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The guy who wrote this...
96
00:04:52,792 --> 00:04:54,627
I love the smell of napalm in the morning.
97
00:04:54,711 --> 00:04:56,004
...and directed that.
98
00:04:56,087 --> 00:05:00,800
We told him about this fake LA air raid
that took place in 1942.
99
00:05:00,883 --> 00:05:04,012
And John Milius then told
someone else about it.
100
00:05:04,095 --> 00:05:07,724
John told Steven how great it was.
You don't mean the Steven?
101
00:05:07,807 --> 00:05:10,727
Steven Spielberg,
one of the hottest directors.
102
00:05:10,810 --> 00:05:13,688
Steven Spielberg,
who, at this point in the mid-'70s,
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was really only just warming up.
104
00:05:16,024 --> 00:05:19,319
After making one
of the most successful movies of all time,
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00:05:19,402 --> 00:05:23,114
he was looking for a new project
to sink his teeth into.
106
00:05:23,197 --> 00:05:27,994
So, thanks to this guy, when Steven saw
Bob and Bob's script for 1941...
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00:05:28,745 --> 00:05:30,913
He loved it. He wanted to make it.
108
00:05:30,997 --> 00:05:32,790
Wait. So, this is happening?
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Steven Spielberg wanted to make
a movie written by these two Bobs?
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Right. Yes.
Well, that's good.
111
00:05:38,755 --> 00:05:41,007
Especially because he actually did.
112
00:05:41,090 --> 00:05:44,052
And suddenly, Bob Gale
and Bob Zemeckis' dream...
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We wanted to make movies.
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...came true.
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00:05:46,721 --> 00:05:50,016
1941 was the first
of Steven Spielberg's films...
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To win an Oscar?
No.
117
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To make a billion dollars?
No.
118
00:05:53,728 --> 00:05:55,396
Um...
To flop.
119
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Which left Steven Spielberg,
and Bob and Bob,
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with a somewhat uncertain future.
121
00:06:04,155 --> 00:06:08,910
Instead, the Bobs thought they'd rewrite
the past and have that graduate film...
122
00:06:08,993 --> 00:06:09,827
Field of Honor.
123
00:06:09,911 --> 00:06:12,080
...reassessed by Professor Spielberg.
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00:06:12,163 --> 00:06:14,957
Let us start from the beginning.
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00:06:15,041 --> 00:06:19,128
But unlike those artsy,
yeah, fartsy USC professors...
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00:06:19,212 --> 00:06:20,463
Steven was blown away.
127
00:06:20,546 --> 00:06:24,884
...not only did they get top marks,
Robert Zemeckis became the teacher's pet
128
00:06:24,967 --> 00:06:27,095
because after seeing Field of Honor...
129
00:06:27,178 --> 00:06:31,808
Steven was convinced that Bob was really
a director and knew what he was doing.
130
00:06:31,891 --> 00:06:35,103
Yeah, but did he though?
Spielberg gave us the chance...
131
00:06:35,186 --> 00:06:37,522
Bob got his first directing gig.
...to find out.
132
00:06:37,605 --> 00:06:41,317
Which is kind of amazing.
This is someone right out of film school,
133
00:06:41,401 --> 00:06:44,153
and all of a sudden, he has
one of the hottest directors
134
00:06:44,237 --> 00:06:47,698
that signs on to executive produce
his debut film.
135
00:06:47,782 --> 00:06:50,660
A film called
I Wanna Hold Your Hand.
136
00:06:50,743 --> 00:06:53,162
Like always, written by Bob and Bob.
137
00:06:53,246 --> 00:06:56,416
But now, with Zemeckis' directorial debut,
138
00:06:56,499 --> 00:06:59,252
surely, success would be
just around the corner.
139
00:06:59,335 --> 00:07:02,380
It's a huge disappointment
commercially, critically,
140
00:07:02,463 --> 00:07:04,257
and certainly, also for Bob Zemeckis.
141
00:07:04,340 --> 00:07:07,111
You know, this is the kind of thing
that could screw me up permanently.
142
00:07:07,135 --> 00:07:10,680
Indeed. With two flops
to their name, that's a flop a Bob,
143
00:07:10,763 --> 00:07:14,225
the Bobs were gaining
a bankably unbankable track record.
144
00:07:14,308 --> 00:07:15,726
But come on, to be fair...
145
00:07:15,810 --> 00:07:18,938
You know, with a movie,
so much can go wrong.
146
00:07:19,021 --> 00:07:22,859
Right. This guy would know.
Well, my name is Frank Price.
147
00:07:22,942 --> 00:07:25,194
I was head of Columbia Pictures.
148
00:07:25,278 --> 00:07:28,072
He gave
the bad luck Bobs' flailing careers
149
00:07:28,156 --> 00:07:31,325
a bit of a tune-up
with the movie Used Cars,
150
00:07:31,409 --> 00:07:36,539
again written by the Bobs, and like
last time, directed by Bob Zemeckis.
151
00:07:36,622 --> 00:07:40,251
And...
It performed moderately.
152
00:07:40,334 --> 00:07:42,670
And once again...
It's an amazing...
153
00:07:43,838 --> 00:07:45,256
...flop.
Shit!
154
00:07:45,339 --> 00:07:48,801
Bob Zemeckis and Bob Gale
just can't get a hit going.
155
00:07:48,885 --> 00:07:50,845
That's three for three.
Come on, Bobs.
156
00:07:50,928 --> 00:07:52,930
Yep.
But Frank Price was willing
157
00:07:53,014 --> 00:07:55,641
to see if they could make it four flops.
158
00:07:55,725 --> 00:07:59,103
He said, "When you have
your next idea, please bring it to me."
159
00:07:59,187 --> 00:08:02,940
Well, as it turns out,
Bob had a little idea in his back pocket,
160
00:08:03,024 --> 00:08:05,651
one he had while working
on the not-great movie, Used Cars.
161
00:08:05,735 --> 00:08:08,112
In order to promote Used Cars,
162
00:08:08,196 --> 00:08:12,325
the publicity department wanted
to do "Hometown Boy Does Good."
163
00:08:12,408 --> 00:08:15,995
Bob returned home a hero,
or at least,
164
00:08:16,078 --> 00:08:19,832
a semi-successful scriptwriter
with no actual hits to speak of.
165
00:08:19,916 --> 00:08:24,086
So, I went back to my hometown,
a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri,
166
00:08:24,170 --> 00:08:25,922
and I did a bunch of publicity.
167
00:08:26,005 --> 00:08:30,468
While I was visiting with my parents,
I was digging around in the basement,
168
00:08:30,551 --> 00:08:33,638
and I came across
my father's high school yearbook.
169
00:08:35,014 --> 00:08:39,143
Now, my father and I went
to the same high school 29 years apart.
170
00:08:39,894 --> 00:08:41,646
I was amazed to find this yearbook!
171
00:08:41,729 --> 00:08:44,857
I said, "This is cool."
It'd be kind of like going back in time
172
00:08:44,941 --> 00:08:47,568
and seeing what my school
was like in 1940.
173
00:08:47,652 --> 00:08:50,404
And it was here,
deep in his past,
174
00:08:50,488 --> 00:08:53,032
in the house
he grew up in during the '50s,
175
00:08:53,115 --> 00:08:56,536
that Bob discovered something
that would drastically change
176
00:08:56,619 --> 00:08:58,287
the course of his future.
177
00:08:58,371 --> 00:09:02,458
I discovered that my dad was
the president of his graduating class.
178
00:09:02,542 --> 00:09:04,168
I had no idea.
179
00:09:04,252 --> 00:09:05,586
And I thought to myself,
180
00:09:05,670 --> 00:09:09,131
"Would I have been friends with my dad
if I'd been in high school with him?"
181
00:09:09,215 --> 00:09:10,591
This is it!
182
00:09:10,675 --> 00:09:12,760
And boom! There it is.
183
00:09:12,843 --> 00:09:15,012
That was the lightning bolt
that struck me.
184
00:09:15,096 --> 00:09:18,057
A kid ends up in high school
with his own father.
185
00:09:18,140 --> 00:09:22,353
And with Bob's basement
discovery, Back to the Future was born.
186
00:09:22,436 --> 00:09:25,898
I go back to California.
I tell this story to Bob.
187
00:09:25,982 --> 00:09:27,567
He gets really excited.
188
00:09:27,650 --> 00:09:29,151
He says, "Hell, yeah!"
189
00:09:29,235 --> 00:09:31,404
"And what if your mom went
to the same high school
190
00:09:31,487 --> 00:09:34,782
and all the things she told you
that she never did with a boy...
191
00:09:34,865 --> 00:09:36,534
And he can sleep in my room.
192
00:09:36,617 --> 00:09:38,077
...she did 'em all."
193
00:09:38,160 --> 00:09:41,789
After Bob and I kicked enough ideas
around for this thing, we said,
194
00:09:41,872 --> 00:09:46,127
"Hey, let's set up a meeting with Frank.
Let's go in there and tell him about it."
195
00:09:46,210 --> 00:09:48,337
Marching into Columbia HQ,
196
00:09:48,421 --> 00:09:51,757
Bob and Bob began their pitch
for Back to the Future.
197
00:09:51,841 --> 00:09:55,636
It's kind of a difficult concept.
But to be fair...
198
00:09:55,720 --> 00:09:58,472
It's a half-baked idea.
But to also be fair...
199
00:09:58,556 --> 00:10:00,558
Great premise.
That premise being...
200
00:10:00,641 --> 00:10:04,061
A kid goes back in time,
encounters his parents in high school,
201
00:10:04,145 --> 00:10:06,689
and interferes with their relationship.
202
00:10:06,772 --> 00:10:09,984
If he can't get 'em back together,
he's never gonna be born.
203
00:10:10,067 --> 00:10:13,154
So far, the exact plot
to Back to the Future,
204
00:10:13,237 --> 00:10:15,990
minus the ending, you know.
That's the same, right?
205
00:10:16,073 --> 00:10:18,701
Bob wanted to keep
telling him more scenes.
206
00:10:18,784 --> 00:10:20,995
And I kept going,
"Stop, stop, he's buying it."
207
00:10:21,078 --> 00:10:23,623
Exactly.
Because Frank did buy it.
208
00:10:23,706 --> 00:10:27,460
Bob and I would write the script together.
I'd produce and Bob would direct.
209
00:10:27,543 --> 00:10:30,212
Bob and Bob turned that...
Half-baked idea.
210
00:10:30,296 --> 00:10:34,342
...into the fully-formed story we love.
With a start, middle...
211
00:10:34,425 --> 00:10:35,718
I'm from the future.
212
00:10:35,801 --> 00:10:37,887
...and, of course, that ending,
213
00:10:37,970 --> 00:10:40,014
where Doc Brown...
Professor Brown.
214
00:10:40,097 --> 00:10:43,768
Professor Brown gives
the glorious DeLorean time machine...
215
00:10:43,851 --> 00:10:46,354
Time machine was built
out of an old refrigerator.
216
00:10:47,730 --> 00:10:50,316
Right. Yes, a fridge.
Well, in any case, Doc...
217
00:10:50,399 --> 00:10:51,734
Professor.
Yeah.
218
00:10:51,817 --> 00:10:56,530
...harnesses the power required
to send Marty back to the future with...
219
00:10:56,614 --> 00:10:59,450
Nuclear energy from an atomic bomb test.
220
00:11:03,120 --> 00:11:06,540
Okay, I don't remember that.
But, anyway, it succeeds.
221
00:11:06,624 --> 00:11:11,379
And the ending had Marty
arriving in a revised future
222
00:11:11,462 --> 00:11:17,927
that had some resemblance
to the Futurama 1939 World's Fair.
223
00:11:18,010 --> 00:11:20,221
Oh, yeah, and one other thing...
224
00:11:20,304 --> 00:11:24,141
Professor Brown had a pet chimpanzee...
225
00:11:25,226 --> 00:11:29,647
...named Shemp.
It turned out that nobody liked that.
226
00:11:29,730 --> 00:11:33,150
No, including Frank Price.
Hmm.
227
00:11:33,234 --> 00:11:36,987
But their problems were soon
very much bigger than Shemp.
228
00:11:37,071 --> 00:11:39,198
Frank decided not to make the movie.
229
00:11:39,281 --> 00:11:40,281
Uh, no.
230
00:11:40,616 --> 00:11:41,826
We didn't know why.
231
00:11:41,909 --> 00:11:44,787
Having come so close,
Back to the Future
232
00:11:44,870 --> 00:11:48,374
and Bob Zemeckis's career
were back to the drawing board...
233
00:11:48,457 --> 00:11:51,001
Bob was so despondent at that point that
he said,
234
00:11:51,085 --> 00:11:54,046
"I've gotta have something to direct.
I'm just gonna say yes
235
00:11:54,130 --> 00:11:56,173
to the next decent script
that comes along."
236
00:11:56,257 --> 00:11:58,968
Almost tailor-made
for Zemeckis' résumé...
237
00:11:59,051 --> 00:12:01,762
The studio had no faith
in this project whatsoever,
238
00:12:01,846 --> 00:12:05,015
which is why Bob Zemeckis gets asked
to direct it in the first place.
239
00:12:06,475 --> 00:12:07,309
I'll do it.
240
00:12:07,393 --> 00:12:09,687
Zemeckis is flattered
to sign on,
241
00:12:09,770 --> 00:12:14,817
and when, in March of 1984,
Romancing the Stone premiered...
242
00:12:14,900 --> 00:12:19,238
Somehow, Romancing the Stone
ended up being this amazing hit for Fox.
243
00:12:20,531 --> 00:12:24,034
Finally, for Bob Zemeckis,
his series of flops flipped.
244
00:12:24,118 --> 00:12:25,828
And suddenly...
245
00:12:25,911 --> 00:12:29,290
Everybody and their uncle wants
to be Bob Zemeckis's best friend.
246
00:12:29,373 --> 00:12:33,502
He already had one of those.
A best friend, not an... not an uncle.
247
00:12:33,586 --> 00:12:35,421
Bob comes to me and he says,
248
00:12:35,504 --> 00:12:38,382
"You know, we can get
Back to the Future made finally."
249
00:12:38,466 --> 00:12:40,610
Actually, maybe he did have
a kind of uncle.
250
00:12:40,634 --> 00:12:42,219
Friendly uncle Spielberg.
251
00:12:42,303 --> 00:12:45,389
And Steven was more than interested
because he had just set up
252
00:12:45,473 --> 00:12:47,975
Amblin Entertainment at Universal.
253
00:12:48,058 --> 00:12:51,061
And with Universal's support,
Back to the Future's future
254
00:12:51,145 --> 00:12:52,062
seemed inevitable.
255
00:12:52,146 --> 00:12:52,980
Rock and roll.
256
00:12:53,063 --> 00:12:55,649
But there was
one spoke in the wheel.
257
00:12:55,733 --> 00:12:58,444
We have to get the project
back from Columbia.
258
00:12:58,527 --> 00:13:01,447
Yeah, 'cause
even though Frank had passed...
259
00:13:01,530 --> 00:13:02,698
We didn't know why.
260
00:13:02,782 --> 00:13:06,452
...Columbia still owned the script,
which was a problem for both Bobs.
261
00:13:06,535 --> 00:13:08,454
Damn!
But, come on!
262
00:13:08,537 --> 00:13:10,164
With Spielberg behind them,
263
00:13:10,247 --> 00:13:13,667
surely, the studio head at Universal
could get something done.
264
00:13:13,751 --> 00:13:16,504
Who's the president
of Universal at this point?
265
00:13:16,587 --> 00:13:19,173
Great question.
Our good friend, Frank Price.
266
00:13:19,256 --> 00:13:20,591
Is it? Oh, dear
Hi.
267
00:13:20,674 --> 00:13:22,676
Damn!
Having left Columbia,
268
00:13:22,760 --> 00:13:25,596
Frank found himself
the head of Universal Pictures.
269
00:13:25,679 --> 00:13:26,679
Damn, damn!
270
00:13:26,722 --> 00:13:28,282
Which is actually the reason
271
00:13:28,307 --> 00:13:30,893
that he pulled the plug on the project
back at Columbia.
272
00:13:30,976 --> 00:13:32,394
Because I left.
273
00:13:32,478 --> 00:13:35,523
Which meant
Frank actually still liked it.
274
00:13:35,606 --> 00:13:38,734
He just didn't feel
like it was wise for him
275
00:13:38,818 --> 00:13:43,072
to commit the studio to something
that he wasn't gonna be there to oversee.
276
00:13:43,155 --> 00:13:44,448
That's the way I am.
277
00:13:44,532 --> 00:13:48,577
And just like that,
Back to the Future was back in business.
278
00:13:48,661 --> 00:13:51,247
Or should we say, "monkey business"?
279
00:13:51,330 --> 00:13:53,165
Movies with chimps in them
don't make money.
280
00:13:53,249 --> 00:13:58,546
Or so says Sid Sheinberg,
Frank's appointed overseer of the project.
281
00:13:58,629 --> 00:14:02,216
He was basically like a godfather,
professionally, to Steven Spielberg.
282
00:14:02,299 --> 00:14:04,635
He gave Steven Spielberg
his first professional job.
283
00:14:04,718 --> 00:14:08,848
And he gave Bob and Bob
a very specific note to lose Shemp.
284
00:14:08,931 --> 00:14:12,393
I said, "Well, Sid, what about
the Clint Eastwood movies?"
285
00:14:13,644 --> 00:14:16,480
He said, "That, sir, was an orangutan."
286
00:14:17,481 --> 00:14:20,276
Okay, Doc Brown has a dog
instead of a chimp. Not a big deal.
287
00:14:20,818 --> 00:14:24,321
But something that would
require just a touch more unpicking
288
00:14:24,405 --> 00:14:26,407
was Sheinberg's biggest problem.
289
00:14:26,490 --> 00:14:27,324
The ending.
290
00:14:27,408 --> 00:14:29,869
Yeah, well,
no one really liked that.
291
00:14:29,952 --> 00:14:33,455
The futuristic ending
didn't end it on the right note.
292
00:14:33,539 --> 00:14:35,419
Well,
Sheinberg sorted that out, too.
293
00:14:35,499 --> 00:14:39,128
Marty would come back to a world
in which his parents had improved,
294
00:14:39,211 --> 00:14:41,255
but the rest of the world was the same.
295
00:14:41,338 --> 00:14:43,299
Yeah, okay.
Not a big deal.
296
00:14:43,382 --> 00:14:46,760
Sheinberg had more notes.
He didn't like Professor Brown.
297
00:14:46,844 --> 00:14:49,346
We said, "Okay. How about Doc Brown?"
298
00:14:49,430 --> 00:14:50,681
Sid said, "Okay."
299
00:14:50,764 --> 00:14:54,602
He made us change the name of Marty's
mother to the name of his own wife.
300
00:14:54,685 --> 00:14:55,519
Lorraine.
301
00:14:55,603 --> 00:14:57,038
So far...
Not a big deal.
302
00:14:57,062 --> 00:14:58,314
...just one more note.
303
00:14:58,397 --> 00:15:00,900
Sid never liked the title
Back to the Future.
304
00:15:00,983 --> 00:15:05,112
No. No, not again. Come on!
305
00:15:05,195 --> 00:15:07,990
He just said,
"It doesn't make any sense."
306
00:15:08,073 --> 00:15:09,617
"How can you go back to the future?"
307
00:15:09,700 --> 00:15:11,452
I still don't understand.
308
00:15:11,535 --> 00:15:15,205
But he made his view clear
to everyone, including producer...
309
00:15:15,289 --> 00:15:17,041
Hi.
Yes, hello, Neil Canton.
310
00:15:17,124 --> 00:15:22,504
And so, he sent a memo to Steven,
and he copied Bob and Bob on it.
311
00:15:22,588 --> 00:15:24,840
And the memo's instructions
were simple.
312
00:15:24,924 --> 00:15:29,470
It said Sheinberg wanted the movie
to be called Spaceman From Pluto.
313
00:15:31,347 --> 00:15:32,973
We turned white. It's just horrible.
314
00:15:33,057 --> 00:15:34,558
I think it's terrible!
315
00:15:34,642 --> 00:15:37,770
We said, "Steven, what do we do?
He's serious, isn't he?"
316
00:15:37,853 --> 00:15:39,313
Steven said, "Yeah, he's serious."
317
00:15:39,396 --> 00:15:42,024
So was Spielberg.
Steven said, "I know what to do."
318
00:15:42,107 --> 00:15:46,028
"Dear Sid,
thank you for your most hilarious memo."
319
00:15:46,111 --> 00:15:49,448
"We all got a big laugh out of it.
Keep 'em coming."
320
00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:53,327
That was it. We never heard
about that problem again.
321
00:15:53,410 --> 00:15:54,828
"Problem." Not a problem.
322
00:15:54,912 --> 00:15:57,414
So with the name
of the movie locked in,
323
00:15:57,498 --> 00:15:59,792
attention turned to other names.
324
00:15:59,875 --> 00:16:02,252
Namely...
Who is going to play Marty?
325
00:16:02,336 --> 00:16:03,336
That's easy.
326
00:16:03,379 --> 00:16:08,425
Bob and I knew that the perfect kid
to play Marty McFly was...
327
00:16:08,509 --> 00:16:09,718
Michael Fox...
328
00:16:09,802 --> 00:16:12,680
This young actor had become
a superstar
329
00:16:12,763 --> 00:16:16,141
as everyone's favorite conservative,
Alex P. Keaton,
330
00:16:16,225 --> 00:16:19,561
in the worldwide television
smash, Family Ties.
331
00:16:19,645 --> 00:16:24,149
He's charming. He's warm. He's likeable.
332
00:16:24,233 --> 00:16:26,819
He's busy. He's very busy.
The answer was, "No."
333
00:16:26,902 --> 00:16:28,964
Come on! By this point,
Back to the Future
334
00:16:28,988 --> 00:16:30,990
was decades in the making.
335
00:16:31,073 --> 00:16:34,410
They couldn't wait
until Family Ties untied?
336
00:16:34,493 --> 00:16:37,871
Universal wouldn't let us
wait for Michael, right?
337
00:16:37,955 --> 00:16:40,082
They wanted the movie to get done,
338
00:16:40,165 --> 00:16:43,043
and they wanted the movie to come out
around Memorial Day.
339
00:16:43,127 --> 00:16:47,381
And with that, Michael J. Fox
himself became a memory.
340
00:16:47,881 --> 00:16:48,882
At least, for now.
341
00:16:48,966 --> 00:16:53,846
So, with Michael off the table,
we read every young actor in town.
342
00:16:53,929 --> 00:16:56,765
And this being Tinseltown,
there were quite a few.
343
00:16:56,849 --> 00:16:58,767
You'll find their pictures in here.
344
00:16:58,851 --> 00:17:00,019
C. Thomas Howell.
345
00:17:00,102 --> 00:17:02,354
You don't mind if we park
for a few minutes, do you?
346
00:17:02,438 --> 00:17:03,522
Jon Cryer...
347
00:17:03,605 --> 00:17:04,605
Um...
348
00:17:04,648 --> 00:17:07,276
Some kind of tiny version
of Ben Stiller.
349
00:17:07,359 --> 00:17:09,119
Lorraine, lately, I've come
to the conclusion
350
00:17:09,153 --> 00:17:10,873
that I don't know anything
about my parents.
351
00:17:10,904 --> 00:17:12,865
But as for Sid Sheinberg...
352
00:17:12,948 --> 00:17:14,450
"Problem." Not a problem.
353
00:17:14,533 --> 00:17:19,038
...well, he was causing problems
that were probably going to be problems.
354
00:17:19,121 --> 00:17:22,374
Sheinberg was very bullish
on an actor named Eric Stoltz.
355
00:17:22,458 --> 00:17:24,835
I've got this real strange disease.
356
00:17:24,918 --> 00:17:28,630
Sheinberg was convinced that,
because he was so good in Mask,
357
00:17:28,714 --> 00:17:29,714
he could do anything.
358
00:17:29,757 --> 00:17:30,966
A good actor.
359
00:17:31,050 --> 00:17:33,177
His performance was terrific.
But...
360
00:17:33,260 --> 00:17:35,554
But, uh...
But it's not funny.
361
00:17:37,973 --> 00:17:40,976
He said, "I'm so sure
that Stoltz is gonna be great
362
00:17:41,060 --> 00:17:42,853
that if he doesn't work out, you know,
363
00:17:42,936 --> 00:17:45,397
you can put somebody else in the movie
and start over again."
364
00:17:45,481 --> 00:17:46,899
And...
And...
365
00:17:46,982 --> 00:17:50,736
With reluctant enthusiasm...
Eric Stoltz became Marty McFly.
366
00:17:50,819 --> 00:17:52,863
Yeah, surely, you know,
he'll be good.
367
00:17:52,946 --> 00:17:55,449
So, that was, that's what we did. Um...
368
00:17:55,949 --> 00:17:57,785
But there was plenty more to do
369
00:17:57,868 --> 00:18:01,497
because Eric Stoltz couldn't
put 1.21 gigawatts of power
370
00:18:01,580 --> 00:18:03,582
into a time machine all by himself.
371
00:18:03,665 --> 00:18:07,336
There was the rest of the cast to cast.
There was Marty's dad.
372
00:18:07,419 --> 00:18:10,047
Hey, you, get your damn hands off her.
373
00:18:10,130 --> 00:18:14,093
Crispin Glover was absolutely in a class
by himself.
374
00:18:14,176 --> 00:18:15,803
And Marty's mom.
375
00:18:15,886 --> 00:18:18,972
When Lea Thompson walked in,
it was like... that was it.
376
00:18:19,056 --> 00:18:20,474
Marty's girlfriend.
377
00:18:20,557 --> 00:18:24,603
Melora Hardin, a very wonderful,
effervescent, young actress.
378
00:18:25,729 --> 00:18:28,774
T here was one
of cinema history's greatest bullies.
379
00:18:28,857 --> 00:18:31,902
Oh, hi, Biff, how's it going?
No, not Billy Zane.
380
00:18:31,985 --> 00:18:34,738
Don't change the subject, McFly.
I told you never to come in here.
381
00:18:34,822 --> 00:18:37,074
The bully
with the most punchable face
382
00:18:37,157 --> 00:18:38,408
was stand-up comic...
383
00:18:38,492 --> 00:18:41,078
Tom Wilson. Tom?
384
00:18:41,161 --> 00:18:44,915
He's got the physicality.
He's got a great sense of humor.
385
00:18:44,998 --> 00:18:47,459
And, of course,
Christopher Lloyd.
386
00:18:47,543 --> 00:18:48,669
Oh, yeah!
387
00:18:48,752 --> 00:18:51,839
He was gonna bring something to it
that was gonna be different
388
00:18:51,922 --> 00:18:53,590
than what anybody else was gonna bring.
389
00:18:53,674 --> 00:18:57,094
Exactly. Christopher Lloyd
is Doc Brown.
390
00:18:57,970 --> 00:18:59,638
Well, he would be.
391
00:18:59,721 --> 00:19:03,851
He tossed the script into a trash can.
He didn't bother to read it.
392
00:19:03,934 --> 00:19:05,144
I've been busy.
393
00:19:05,269 --> 00:19:07,187
Theater was very important to him.
394
00:19:07,271 --> 00:19:09,273
As was the advice of his wife.
395
00:19:09,356 --> 00:19:12,818
She said to him that,
"You sure you wanna do that?"
396
00:19:12,901 --> 00:19:16,947
"Steven Spielberg's company is offering
you a big role in a movie."
397
00:19:17,030 --> 00:19:21,243
"Maybe you should just read it."
With that, the doctor was in.
398
00:19:21,326 --> 00:19:25,581
When the cast was fully assembled,
reading was exactly what they all did.
399
00:19:25,664 --> 00:19:28,041
Around a table, at a table-read.
400
00:19:28,125 --> 00:19:32,504
They're trying to find their character.
You make sure the dialogue is working.
401
00:19:32,588 --> 00:19:34,631
Your Uncle Joey didn't make parole again.
402
00:19:35,424 --> 00:19:36,717
It seemed to be.
403
00:19:36,800 --> 00:19:38,594
And they get to the last page...
404
00:19:38,677 --> 00:19:41,555
That last page,
with the ending that everyone,
405
00:19:41,638 --> 00:19:44,474
especially Sid and Frank,
were so happy with...
406
00:19:44,558 --> 00:19:46,268
Eric's face sinks.
407
00:19:46,351 --> 00:19:49,354
Eric Stoltz may well be
a very fine actor,
408
00:19:49,438 --> 00:19:52,316
but he couldn't hide
his feelings about the script.
409
00:19:52,399 --> 00:19:56,236
Eric declared that he thought
that the movie was a tragedy.
410
00:19:56,320 --> 00:19:59,072
He says, "Well, this is so sad."
411
00:19:59,156 --> 00:20:01,909
Everyone kind of turns to him
and says, "What's so sad?"
412
00:20:01,992 --> 00:20:07,122
He said, "Marty, everyone that he knows,
remembers a life that he didn't live."
413
00:20:07,206 --> 00:20:10,292
"You know, he has to live the rest
of his life pretending to be
414
00:20:10,375 --> 00:20:11,668
someone that he's not."
415
00:20:11,752 --> 00:20:14,838
Bob sort of had a quizzical look
on his face, as if to say,
416
00:20:14,922 --> 00:20:19,009
"We're supposed to be having fun here.
You're going too deep to a dark place."
417
00:20:19,092 --> 00:20:22,679
So, with irreconcilable
differences about the script,
418
00:20:22,763 --> 00:20:25,515
Eric Stoltz was replaced.
419
00:20:26,600 --> 00:20:29,394
No, just kidding. That would be crazy.
420
00:20:30,062 --> 00:20:32,981
And while they weren't
rethinking their star, yet,
421
00:20:33,065 --> 00:20:37,611
there was one crucial part of the script
that their enthusiasm was cooling on.
422
00:20:37,694 --> 00:20:40,822
The time machine was built
out of an old refrigerator.
423
00:20:40,906 --> 00:20:42,157
Well, about that...
424
00:20:42,241 --> 00:20:46,662
Bob said the logistics about putting
this refrigerator on the back of a truck,
425
00:20:46,745 --> 00:20:49,873
and taking it off, wouldn't it be better
if Doc built the thing into a car?
426
00:20:49,957 --> 00:20:52,125
Welcome to my latest experiment.
This is a big one.
427
00:20:52,209 --> 00:20:53,889
The one I've been waiting for all my life.
428
00:20:53,919 --> 00:20:57,714
"Yeah, that would make a lot of sense.
Let's make the time machine into a car."
429
00:20:57,798 --> 00:21:00,384
And so, they did,
but not just any car.
430
00:21:00,467 --> 00:21:04,429
Ford Mustang called and wanted
to pay us to use Mustangs in the movie.
431
00:21:04,513 --> 00:21:05,889
Mustang attitude.
432
00:21:08,517 --> 00:21:12,813
Bob, I'll say,
"politely" turned them down.
433
00:21:12,896 --> 00:21:14,064
Just say no.
434
00:21:14,147 --> 00:21:17,150
And politely pulled up
the doors on the real deal.
435
00:21:17,234 --> 00:21:20,696
Are you telling me that you built
a time machine out of a DeLorean?
436
00:21:20,779 --> 00:21:22,155
If you have a DeLorean,
437
00:21:22,239 --> 00:21:25,450
and it has gull-wing doors,
all of a sudden, it looks like...
438
00:21:25,534 --> 00:21:26,534
A seagull!
439
00:21:26,576 --> 00:21:28,930
It's a spaceship.
Yes, of course, a spaceship.
440
00:21:28,954 --> 00:21:32,541
If you're gonna build a time machine
into a car, why not do it with some style?
441
00:21:32,624 --> 00:21:34,668
And with a few tweaks
and a tune-up
442
00:21:34,751 --> 00:21:37,087
by legendary designer Ron Cobb,
443
00:21:37,170 --> 00:21:41,008
to put the final touches
on this iconic design was this guy.
444
00:21:41,091 --> 00:21:43,260
A legendary designer in his own right.
445
00:21:43,343 --> 00:21:48,223
I just did some tweaking here and there,
and then, my drawings went
446
00:21:48,307 --> 00:21:50,559
to Kevin Pike's special effects shop.
447
00:21:50,642 --> 00:21:55,105
But it wasn't just the drawings
that showed up on Kevin Pike's doorstep.
448
00:21:55,188 --> 00:21:56,565
Here they came.
449
00:21:56,648 --> 00:22:00,569
Three stock DeLoreans
to turn into time machines.
450
00:22:00,652 --> 00:22:03,113
We collected parts from all over.
451
00:22:03,196 --> 00:22:05,115
Used car parts, aircraft parts.
452
00:22:05,198 --> 00:22:08,160
Find something that might look
like something in the sketch.
453
00:22:08,243 --> 00:22:09,243
Things like...
454
00:22:09,286 --> 00:22:11,830
Part of the plutonium chamber
that we made,
455
00:22:11,913 --> 00:22:15,250
we needed something
that looked like a fan of some kind,
456
00:22:15,334 --> 00:22:19,629
and we ended up finding
a Dodge hubcap that just fit the bill.
457
00:22:19,713 --> 00:22:23,717
So while Kevin and his team
got to work on three DeLoreans,
458
00:22:23,800 --> 00:22:26,094
a valid question began to surface.
459
00:22:26,178 --> 00:22:27,888
How much is this gonna cost?
460
00:22:27,971 --> 00:22:29,765
According to Sid Sheinberg...
461
00:22:29,848 --> 00:22:31,308
Twelve million dollars.
462
00:22:31,391 --> 00:22:34,811
But according
to unit production manager, Dennis Jones,
463
00:22:34,895 --> 00:22:38,106
whose job it was
to formulate a realistic budget...
464
00:22:38,190 --> 00:22:41,485
It came in
at around 18-plus million dollars.
465
00:22:41,568 --> 00:22:43,528
To which Sid Sheinberg said...
466
00:22:43,612 --> 00:22:47,199
We don't want to spend this much money.
You need to take money out.
467
00:22:47,282 --> 00:22:49,284
Do you know what this means?
468
00:22:49,368 --> 00:22:52,287
With just months
until principal photography began...
469
00:22:52,371 --> 00:22:54,451
Then it became a question of,
"What do you take out?"
470
00:22:54,498 --> 00:22:56,333
What about Eric Stoltz?
No.
471
00:22:56,416 --> 00:22:57,459
Not yet, fine.
472
00:22:57,542 --> 00:23:00,337
What can you do
dramatically to save money?
473
00:23:00,420 --> 00:23:02,756
Well, there was one thing.
474
00:23:02,839 --> 00:23:06,551
The ending,
nuclear energy from an atomic bomb test.
475
00:23:07,552 --> 00:23:10,806
Yes, that's right.
This was still the ending.
476
00:23:10,889 --> 00:23:14,851
To achieve that,
we had to build maybe an 80-85 foot tower
477
00:23:14,935 --> 00:23:17,104
to then drop something, flying down,
478
00:23:17,187 --> 00:23:20,190
and then, ILM would do
the effect of the bomb
479
00:23:20,273 --> 00:23:22,567
and it was just monumental.
480
00:23:22,651 --> 00:23:24,444
Damn!
In other words...
481
00:23:24,528 --> 00:23:25,821
It was very expensive.
482
00:23:25,904 --> 00:23:28,156
Like, six million dollars
too expensive.
483
00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:30,033
Damn, damn!
So, obviously...
484
00:23:30,117 --> 00:23:32,452
They end up scrapping this whole idea.
485
00:23:32,536 --> 00:23:34,955
Which, of course,
kept the budget from blowing up.
486
00:23:35,038 --> 00:23:38,542
But it left Bob and Bob
with a scientific conundrum,
487
00:23:38,625 --> 00:23:42,671
which they contemplated quietly
as they looked around Hill Valley Square,
488
00:23:42,754 --> 00:23:45,340
otherwise known as the Universal Backlot,
489
00:23:45,424 --> 00:23:49,136
which was prepped and ready
for action in just a matter of weeks.
490
00:23:49,719 --> 00:23:53,765
What if we put a clock on the top
of the Universal courthouse?
491
00:23:53,849 --> 00:23:55,684
It'd be cool
to have a big lightning strike.
492
00:23:55,767 --> 00:23:58,520
An idea
that actually worked out pretty well.
493
00:23:58,603 --> 00:24:00,355
It seemed to be a much cheaper result.
494
00:24:00,439 --> 00:24:01,690
Great Scott!
495
00:24:01,773 --> 00:24:06,194
The creativity that you draw on
when you don't have the budget,
496
00:24:06,278 --> 00:24:07,654
come up with better ideas.
497
00:24:07,737 --> 00:24:11,324
We got it down to 12,
so we went full blast ahead.
498
00:24:13,034 --> 00:24:15,263
And so, when filming began
in late November...
499
00:24:15,287 --> 00:24:19,916
I think we had 65 days. We had to be
in the theaters by the end of May.
500
00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:22,461
At least it wouldn't be
a particularly tough shoot.
501
00:24:22,544 --> 00:24:24,212
Rolling. Quiet, please.
502
00:24:24,296 --> 00:24:28,467
Pretty much everything
about this film was going to be tough.
503
00:24:28,550 --> 00:24:29,926
Have it your way.
504
00:24:30,010 --> 00:24:34,264
You've got actors playing older
and younger versions of themselves.
505
00:24:34,347 --> 00:24:36,141
Quite convincingly, apparently.
506
00:24:36,224 --> 00:24:37,851
Lea was doing a makeup test
507
00:24:37,934 --> 00:24:40,729
when the doctor came in
to give her her health exam.
508
00:24:40,812 --> 00:24:43,231
Standard industry practice,
of course.
509
00:24:43,315 --> 00:24:45,984
Except Lea was still wearing her makeup.
510
00:24:46,067 --> 00:24:49,279
And he said, "She's in remarkable shape
for a woman her age."
511
00:24:49,362 --> 00:24:53,867
Girls these days,
smoking pot, drinking booze.
512
00:24:53,950 --> 00:24:56,536
Okay, so, they didn't
have to worry about makeup,
513
00:24:56,620 --> 00:24:59,581
but there were plenty of other things
that could go wrong.
514
00:24:59,664 --> 00:25:01,875
Stunt cars, fire effects,
515
00:25:01,958 --> 00:25:05,212
same sets redressed
for two different periods.
516
00:25:05,295 --> 00:25:08,924
It was a very ambitious undertaking.
517
00:25:09,007 --> 00:25:12,093
To make things easier,
Bob Zemeckis called up his old buddy
518
00:25:12,177 --> 00:25:13,011
from the jungle.
519
00:25:13,094 --> 00:25:16,223
No, not Shemp. Shemp's gone, relax.
520
00:25:16,306 --> 00:25:19,017
Dean Cundey, his DP
from Romancing the Stone.
521
00:25:19,100 --> 00:25:21,520
I couldn't stop thinking about you.
522
00:25:21,603 --> 00:25:25,899
The first thing we shot
was the scene where George McFly
523
00:25:25,982 --> 00:25:29,194
is outside of Lorraine's house,
climbing the tree.
524
00:25:29,277 --> 00:25:32,322
Oh, hang on, not that Marty.
Still this Marty.
525
00:25:32,405 --> 00:25:34,282
It's only the first week of shooting...
526
00:25:34,366 --> 00:25:39,412
You start to get this nagging feeling
that something's not quite right.
527
00:25:40,747 --> 00:25:41,581
What?
528
00:25:41,665 --> 00:25:43,959
We do these various takes with Eric,
529
00:25:44,042 --> 00:25:47,379
and some of them were good
and some of them were not.
530
00:25:47,837 --> 00:25:52,676
It seemed to be evident
that he was taking it very seriously.
531
00:25:52,759 --> 00:25:58,139
He had approached it
as if he had actually gone back into time.
532
00:25:58,223 --> 00:26:00,725
And is it scary, and is it apprehensive?
533
00:26:00,809 --> 00:26:04,229
Emotions the producers
were feeling quite a bit too.
534
00:26:04,312 --> 00:26:07,816
You kind of trick yourself into thinking
you'd never use a whole take.
535
00:26:07,899 --> 00:26:11,987
If we took this moment from this take...
Oh, he was okay here at this moment.
536
00:26:12,070 --> 00:26:14,072
Combine it with this moment
from that take.
537
00:26:14,155 --> 00:26:19,452
You're hoping that there's enough takes
and enough pieces in the performance
538
00:26:19,536 --> 00:26:21,288
that it's going to cut together.
539
00:26:21,371 --> 00:26:23,415
You make it sound so easy.
540
00:26:23,498 --> 00:26:26,751
But is it really that easy
to fix things in post?
541
00:26:26,835 --> 00:26:30,422
We kept on going
because the idea of replacing an actor
542
00:26:30,505 --> 00:26:33,925
was not even in our consciousness,
'cause nobody does that!
543
00:26:34,009 --> 00:26:37,012
And anyway,
the rest of the cast were a breeze.
544
00:26:37,095 --> 00:26:39,723
Crispin Glover would drive the crew nuts.
545
00:26:39,806 --> 00:26:43,018
Maybe not him. Not that one.
Crispin was a character.
546
00:26:43,101 --> 00:26:45,270
Oh, no!
547
00:26:45,353 --> 00:26:46,896
Crispin asked Lea Thompson
548
00:26:46,980 --> 00:26:48,982
if she wouldn't mind coming over
to his apartment
549
00:26:49,065 --> 00:26:52,986
so that the two of them could read
the script and sort of get into character.
550
00:26:53,069 --> 00:26:57,115
He takes out this easel and wants the two
of them to paint a volcano together.
551
00:26:57,198 --> 00:26:59,451
What?
And when they're done, he says...
552
00:26:59,534 --> 00:27:02,746
Oh.
"Okay." And that was enough for him.
553
00:27:03,747 --> 00:27:05,874
Yes, I'm George.
554
00:27:05,957 --> 00:27:09,669
I think he's one of those actors
that has it in his own brain
555
00:27:09,753 --> 00:27:13,673
how his character is, and the director's
sort of immaterial to that vision.
556
00:27:13,757 --> 00:27:16,968
That's why we gotta show her that you,
George McFly, are a fighter.
557
00:27:17,052 --> 00:27:18,595
Somebody who'll stand up for yourself.
558
00:27:18,678 --> 00:27:20,764
Yeah, but not to the director!
559
00:27:20,847 --> 00:27:22,474
He and Bob would fight a lot.
560
00:27:22,557 --> 00:27:25,226
Yeah, but I've never picked
a fight in my entire life.
561
00:27:25,310 --> 00:27:29,230
Not fight, like, openly, but, you know,
it was always Bob trying to get Crispin
562
00:27:29,314 --> 00:27:33,526
to do something that he wanted him to do,
and Crispin didn't do it how Bob wanted.
563
00:27:33,610 --> 00:27:36,363
For example...
There was a scene where he wanted him
564
00:27:36,446 --> 00:27:41,493
to open a door, and that was a discussion
about the theory of opening a door.
565
00:27:41,576 --> 00:27:44,704
Like, you know, just walking
through it, for instance.
566
00:27:44,788 --> 00:27:47,540
Crispin said, "My character
wouldn't come through the door."
567
00:27:47,624 --> 00:27:49,709
Bob said...
"Yes, he needs to."
568
00:27:49,793 --> 00:27:52,587
Oh, no, no, no.
"Crispin, just do the scene."
569
00:27:52,671 --> 00:27:55,006
"Something's on the other side
that we need to film."
570
00:27:55,090 --> 00:27:57,175
To which
he respectfully disagreed.
571
00:27:57,258 --> 00:28:02,138
And not you or anybody else on this planet
is gonna make me change my mind.
572
00:28:02,222 --> 00:28:03,056
And yet...
573
00:28:03,139 --> 00:28:05,475
It went back and forth.
Crispin finally did it.
574
00:28:05,558 --> 00:28:08,645
And you're right. You're right.
575
00:28:08,728 --> 00:28:11,398
Yes, he sure was.
For now at least.
576
00:28:11,481 --> 00:28:14,693
I'm afraid I'm just not very good
at confrontations.
577
00:28:14,776 --> 00:28:17,153
While the on-set tussles
continued...
578
00:28:17,237 --> 00:28:20,031
Ah, Dad!
...the first wave of dailies were being
579
00:28:20,115 --> 00:28:24,369
wrestled with by the editing tag team
of Arthur Schmidt and Harry Keramidas.
580
00:28:24,452 --> 00:28:26,955
We were working in a double-wide trailer
right on the lot.
581
00:28:27,038 --> 00:28:29,666
Where they'd edit a scene
for Bob Zemeckis to look at.
582
00:28:29,749 --> 00:28:32,460
And he would say,
"I think we wanna reshoot that."
583
00:28:32,544 --> 00:28:35,672
That's never a good start.
So what was the problem?
584
00:28:35,755 --> 00:28:38,091
It would be mostly
about Eric Stoltz's performance.
585
00:28:38,174 --> 00:28:41,344
Yes, Eric was still taking
this comedy very seriously.
586
00:28:41,428 --> 00:28:44,597
In fact, there was one shot in particular
that stood out for Bob Zemeckis.
587
00:28:44,681 --> 00:28:49,352
It was that iconic shot where Marty McFly
walks out to the Hill Valley Square
588
00:28:49,436 --> 00:28:52,689
and everything about it
just looked lifeless.
589
00:28:52,772 --> 00:28:56,109
And Zemeckis just said, "Oh my God,
we're making the wrong movie."
590
00:28:56,192 --> 00:28:58,737
So Bob started
making phone calls.
591
00:28:58,820 --> 00:29:01,740
"I think we got a problem.
He's not Marty McFly."
592
00:29:01,823 --> 00:29:05,410
So Bob and Bob took
their big problem to the bigwig,
593
00:29:05,493 --> 00:29:06,619
Steven Spielberg.
594
00:29:06,703 --> 00:29:07,954
Why are you so nervous?
595
00:29:08,037 --> 00:29:12,292
And everybody agreed that Eric
wasn't working out and we had to recast.
596
00:29:12,375 --> 00:29:15,962
But ultimately, it all
came down to just one Bob.
597
00:29:16,045 --> 00:29:19,799
"Well, what do you wanna do, Bob?"
To which that Bob said...
598
00:29:19,883 --> 00:29:24,012
"I wanna get rid of Eric and I wanna get
Michael J. Fox to play the part."
599
00:29:24,095 --> 00:29:27,223
Before they got on
with the very uncomfortable task
600
00:29:27,307 --> 00:29:29,142
of replacing Eric Stoltz...
601
00:29:29,225 --> 00:29:34,189
We should find out if Michael J. Fox
wants to do this before we ask Universal.
602
00:29:34,272 --> 00:29:38,610
And we just have to pray
that Michael will wanna do this.
603
00:29:38,693 --> 00:29:42,530
But to do that, they'd have
to get through Gary Goldberg first.
604
00:29:42,614 --> 00:29:45,617
The executive producer
and patriarch of Family Ties.
605
00:29:45,700 --> 00:29:48,578
And I think we may have
literally gotten on our knees.
606
00:29:48,661 --> 00:29:50,914
And he said, "If Michael wants to do this,
607
00:29:50,997 --> 00:29:53,792
and if you guys
are willing to accept the notion
608
00:29:53,875 --> 00:29:55,877
that Family Ties always comes first..."
609
00:29:55,960 --> 00:29:58,087
And if it does?
Then...
610
00:29:58,171 --> 00:30:01,132
Michael J. Fox is brought
into the producer of Family Ties' office.
611
00:30:01,674 --> 00:30:05,637
The mood was so serious,
Michael assumed he was getting fired.
612
00:30:05,720 --> 00:30:10,016
And then Gary takes out a manila folder
that has the script to Back to the Future,
613
00:30:10,099 --> 00:30:13,478
and says, "Take it home, read it,
but they need to know by tomorrow
614
00:30:13,561 --> 00:30:14,979
whether or not you can sign on."
615
00:30:15,063 --> 00:30:18,817
Michael J. Fox holds the envelope,
feels the weight of it,
616
00:30:18,900 --> 00:30:22,987
compares it to the script of Family Ties
that he has in his other hand
617
00:30:23,071 --> 00:30:26,574
and says, "Yeah, I'll do it."
So he signed on sight unseen.
618
00:30:26,658 --> 00:30:28,418
With Gary's permission,
of course.
619
00:30:28,493 --> 00:30:31,246
God bless you, Gary.
Gary Goldberg, thank you.
620
00:30:31,329 --> 00:30:32,705
Praise Jesus.
621
00:30:32,789 --> 00:30:36,292
Standing back up and wiping
the dust from their grateful knees,
622
00:30:36,376 --> 00:30:37,585
the producers got to work...
623
00:30:37,669 --> 00:30:38,962
Let me show you my plan.
624
00:30:39,045 --> 00:30:40,421
...on their covert operation.
625
00:30:40,505 --> 00:30:44,759
And so now, we had to go to Universal.
There was a meeting.
626
00:30:44,843 --> 00:30:48,388
And in the meeting was
a very serious-faced Sid Sheinberg,
627
00:30:48,471 --> 00:30:49,764
to whom they said...
628
00:30:49,848 --> 00:30:51,850
"Look, Sid, we have a problem."
629
00:30:51,933 --> 00:30:54,936
"We don't think it's what
Back to the Future is supposed to be."
630
00:30:55,019 --> 00:30:58,731
And they reminded him
of what he definitely said during casting.
631
00:30:58,815 --> 00:31:00,316
"If he doesn't work out,
632
00:31:00,400 --> 00:31:03,403
you know, you can put somebody else in
and start over again."
633
00:31:03,486 --> 00:31:04,571
And...
634
00:31:04,654 --> 00:31:07,782
And after hearing them out,
Sid Sheinberg said...
635
00:31:07,866 --> 00:31:09,742
"I think you're wrong."
And...
636
00:31:09,826 --> 00:31:13,079
"And history will probably show
that you're wrong."
637
00:31:13,162 --> 00:31:16,875
Here we were, doing this thing
that you're never supposed to do.
638
00:31:16,958 --> 00:31:20,753
I thought Sid was gonna shut
the movie down, fire us, and this was...
639
00:31:20,837 --> 00:31:22,505
That our career was over.
640
00:31:22,589 --> 00:31:23,840
Yeah.
But?
641
00:31:23,923 --> 00:31:24,984
But...
Sid said...
642
00:31:25,008 --> 00:31:27,677
"I'm willing to do it
because you all believe in it."
643
00:31:27,760 --> 00:31:30,305
And in the opposite
of dropping to their knees,
644
00:31:30,388 --> 00:31:33,516
the Bobs, Neil,
and Steven Spielberg jumped for joy.
645
00:31:33,600 --> 00:31:34,600
We're elated.
646
00:31:34,642 --> 00:31:39,063
"Oh my God, we made this happen.
It's insane, but it's gonna happen."
647
00:31:39,147 --> 00:31:40,148
And now...
648
00:31:40,231 --> 00:31:42,567
Bob has to break the news to Eric Stoltz.
649
00:31:42,650 --> 00:31:43,650
Uh-oh.
650
00:31:43,693 --> 00:31:48,406
And just how Eric would take
that news was anyone's guess.
651
00:31:48,489 --> 00:31:52,869
When I went into Bob's trailer,
Bob was in the midst of telling Eric,
652
00:31:52,952 --> 00:31:59,834
and I actually believe that I saw a smile
come to Eric's face as a sense of relief.
653
00:31:59,918 --> 00:32:04,172
And with that, Eric Stoltz was
officially out of the picture.
654
00:32:04,672 --> 00:32:08,468
But Eric wasn't the only cast member
caught in the crossfire.
655
00:32:08,551 --> 00:32:11,888
Melora Hardin,
who we had cast as Jennifer,
656
00:32:11,971 --> 00:32:14,766
she was about three inches
taller than Michael.
657
00:32:14,849 --> 00:32:15,975
And that meant...
658
00:32:16,059 --> 00:32:19,187
Bob Zemeckis isn't quite sure
if this is gonna look right on screen.
659
00:32:19,270 --> 00:32:22,732
Are audiences gonna react weirdly
that Marty has a taller girlfriend?
660
00:32:22,815 --> 00:32:26,027
He decides to poll
the female members of the crew.
661
00:32:26,110 --> 00:32:26,945
Yes.
662
00:32:27,028 --> 00:32:30,323
And hands down, women on the set said
663
00:32:30,406 --> 00:32:33,785
there is no way a teenage girl
is gonna date a teenage guy
664
00:32:33,868 --> 00:32:36,537
who's shorter than them.
So Melora was out.
665
00:32:36,621 --> 00:32:41,793
But replacing Melora Hardin
on short notice was a tall order.
666
00:32:41,876 --> 00:32:45,588
I got a phone call from my agent,
and she said, "Claudia,
667
00:32:45,672 --> 00:32:50,927
they've recast the role of Marty.
They fired Melora, and they've hired you."
668
00:32:51,010 --> 00:32:54,305
And I'm like...
Why shouldn't you be happy?
669
00:32:54,389 --> 00:32:58,142
Claudia Wells had caught
the eye of no less than Steven Spielberg
670
00:32:58,226 --> 00:33:01,479
during the initial casting,
and really, it was love at first sight.
671
00:33:01,562 --> 00:33:05,066
We fell in love with her immediately.
Technically, second sight.
672
00:33:05,149 --> 00:33:07,193
She was shorter.
Only just.
673
00:33:07,276 --> 00:33:11,990
Claudia is exactly the right height
to play Jennifer against Marty McFly.
674
00:33:12,073 --> 00:33:15,827
But with the imminent arrival
of two new cast members on set,
675
00:33:15,910 --> 00:33:20,331
the excitement quickly turned to panic
for basically everyone on the crew.
676
00:33:20,832 --> 00:33:23,459
People, you could hear
their hearts pounding.
677
00:33:23,543 --> 00:33:24,627
There was tears.
678
00:33:24,711 --> 00:33:26,921
Not so much
for Eric and Melora, but...
679
00:33:27,005 --> 00:33:29,549
"Guys, we've shot
six-and-a-half weeks of it."
680
00:33:29,632 --> 00:33:32,343
Everything we've done
for the last six weeks,
681
00:33:32,427 --> 00:33:35,138
we're gonna do all over
with a new talent.
682
00:33:35,221 --> 00:33:37,682
Uh, what the hell does that mean?
683
00:33:37,765 --> 00:33:42,020
But the real question was...
How are we gonna do this movie now?
684
00:33:42,103 --> 00:33:43,604
There was a mad scramble.
685
00:33:43,688 --> 00:33:47,191
We're redoing, essentially,
the whole movie that we had done.
686
00:33:47,275 --> 00:33:50,528
Eric Stoltz to Michael J. Fox
was day to night.
687
00:33:50,611 --> 00:33:52,905
And not just in how they played Marty.
688
00:33:52,989 --> 00:33:56,075
We had to work with him on this sort of,
these crazy hours.
689
00:33:56,159 --> 00:33:59,996
Juggling being a TV star by day
and a movie star by night.
690
00:34:00,079 --> 00:34:02,290
He'd work during the day on Family Ties,
691
00:34:02,373 --> 00:34:04,709
get in the car,
and come work with us at night.
692
00:34:04,792 --> 00:34:08,004
I'll be working
until about 4:30, 5:00 in the morning.
693
00:34:08,087 --> 00:34:10,131
God knows
when the poor kid slept.
694
00:34:10,214 --> 00:34:11,507
Neil knows this one.
695
00:34:11,591 --> 00:34:14,218
He'd sleep going from one set
to the other.
696
00:34:14,302 --> 00:34:16,971
And the first set
he arrived to was...
697
00:34:17,055 --> 00:34:19,655
Twin Pines Mall.
And with millions of dollars
698
00:34:19,724 --> 00:34:22,727
and everything riding
on Michael J. Fox's puffy shoulders...
699
00:34:22,810 --> 00:34:29,442
Wait a minute, Doc, are you telling me
that you built a time machine...
700
00:34:29,525 --> 00:34:30,693
out of a DeLorean?
701
00:34:30,777 --> 00:34:34,030
The kid got his first laugh
with the very first line.
702
00:34:34,113 --> 00:34:35,907
"You put a time machine in a DeLorean?"
703
00:34:35,990 --> 00:34:38,367
Michael J. Fox was that good
right out of the gate.
704
00:34:38,451 --> 00:34:40,620
It's great.
The whole company knew
705
00:34:40,703 --> 00:34:42,789
that the whole show was gonna change.
706
00:34:42,872 --> 00:34:44,874
It was just night and day.
707
00:34:44,957 --> 00:34:47,293
Again, technically,
more night than day.
708
00:34:47,376 --> 00:34:51,506
And as the crew scrambled to redo
everything with Michael J. Fox...
709
00:34:51,589 --> 00:34:53,424
Creatively, how can we do this?
710
00:34:53,508 --> 00:34:57,053
...the solution was to do
what they could without Michael J. Fox.
711
00:34:57,136 --> 00:34:59,472
We had to do something
before Michael came.
712
00:34:59,555 --> 00:35:03,226
Well, under the steady,
sturdy hands of Bob Zemeckis...
713
00:35:03,309 --> 00:35:07,772
We had Michael come,
and we laid out the master shot...
714
00:35:07,855 --> 00:35:11,943
Then they grabbed his close-up,
and then they wrapped for the night.
715
00:35:12,026 --> 00:35:15,655
First thing the next day,
they got this shot and this shot.
716
00:35:15,738 --> 00:35:19,200
It's a testament to how good
a director Bob Zemeckis is,
717
00:35:19,283 --> 00:35:23,412
so that when we integrated Michael
into it, it's seamless. You can't tell.
718
00:35:23,496 --> 00:35:24,330
Okay, cut.
719
00:35:24,413 --> 00:35:27,708
But with all the inserts,
keeping track of who was in which take
720
00:35:27,792 --> 00:35:30,711
was sometimes a little confusing.
For instance...
721
00:35:30,795 --> 00:35:33,673
Was it really, uh, Michael J. Fox...
722
00:35:33,756 --> 00:35:35,133
What's that?
723
00:35:35,216 --> 00:35:36,976
...or was it Eric Stoltz
who threw the punch?
724
00:35:38,511 --> 00:35:42,306
Tom Wilson, who played Biff, said
he didn't remember reshooting that.
725
00:35:42,849 --> 00:35:45,911
That would mean that this...
Could actually be Eric Stoltz.
726
00:35:45,935 --> 00:35:49,272
If you look at Tom Wilson's eyeline
and you look at the height,
727
00:35:49,355 --> 00:35:51,065
there's no way that's Michael J. Fox.
728
00:35:51,149 --> 00:35:53,067
It was not Eric Stoltz.
Or not.
729
00:35:53,151 --> 00:35:56,612
I went back to the line script
and checked and it was indeed reshot.
730
00:35:56,696 --> 00:35:58,573
Who's this man?
How'd he get on set?
731
00:35:58,656 --> 00:35:59,907
Um...
I don't know.
732
00:35:59,991 --> 00:36:01,200
I think it's a stunt double.
733
00:36:01,284 --> 00:36:03,911
That actually makes sense
when you think about it.
734
00:36:03,995 --> 00:36:07,707
But sifting through all that footage,
Harry did know one thing.
735
00:36:08,332 --> 00:36:11,836
We had an advantage in some ways
of shooting six weeks with Eric Stoltz
736
00:36:11,919 --> 00:36:14,422
because the structures
of the scenes were the same.
737
00:36:14,505 --> 00:36:18,467
It allowed us in editing to be a little
more quick in putting together the cut.
738
00:36:18,551 --> 00:36:21,470
What?
You're George McFly.
739
00:36:21,554 --> 00:36:23,181
Yeah, who are you?
740
00:36:23,264 --> 00:36:25,683
And so, when they were shooting
the skateboard chase,
741
00:36:25,766 --> 00:36:27,643
I was putting it together in pieces.
742
00:36:27,727 --> 00:36:29,770
Which gave them
an unusual luxury.
743
00:36:29,854 --> 00:36:33,232
Bob could realize that something's missing
or could be made better.
744
00:36:33,316 --> 00:36:35,735
For example...
The sparks on the skateboard.
745
00:36:35,818 --> 00:36:39,155
After we had put together the scene,
they did the insert cut
746
00:36:39,238 --> 00:36:41,638
of the skateboard dragging on the ground,
shooting up sparks.
747
00:36:41,699 --> 00:36:43,951
Something else
that could use a makeover?
748
00:36:44,035 --> 00:36:49,207
The wardrobe we came up with for Eric
was designed to blend into the '50s.
749
00:36:49,290 --> 00:36:52,585
We're missing
a whole level of comedy here.
750
00:36:52,668 --> 00:36:55,504
Wouldn't it be more fun
if he didn't blend in?
751
00:36:55,588 --> 00:37:00,885
So the black jacket went away.
They put him in this bright, puffy jacket.
752
00:37:00,968 --> 00:37:03,512
In the '50s, you'd think
that was a life preserver.
753
00:37:03,596 --> 00:37:06,933
While reshooting
with Michael was giving them new life,
754
00:37:07,016 --> 00:37:09,894
Crispin was, well, he was being Crispin.
755
00:37:09,977 --> 00:37:13,314
They were filming in the backyard
where Crispin is sort of talking
756
00:37:13,397 --> 00:37:15,149
with Marty at the clothing line.
757
00:37:15,233 --> 00:37:17,073
There's actually more
to this scene.
758
00:37:17,109 --> 00:37:20,780
Give me a shot. Right here...
I'm not gonna hit you in the stomach.
759
00:37:20,863 --> 00:37:23,574
They couldn't quite get it.
It's just an act!
760
00:37:23,658 --> 00:37:26,369
Crispin keeps kind of wandering in
and out of frame.
761
00:37:26,452 --> 00:37:29,163
She'll believe that.
I know she will. I'm fine.
762
00:37:29,247 --> 00:37:32,750
The crew is saying, "Listen, you've got
marks. You can't leave the frame."
763
00:37:32,833 --> 00:37:36,587
Then, much like with the door,
Crispin had other more Crispin-like ideas.
764
00:37:36,671 --> 00:37:39,882
He says, "Well, this is where
George McFly wants to go."
765
00:37:39,966 --> 00:37:40,883
So the crew...
766
00:37:40,967 --> 00:37:44,637
Builds a box, an actual,
like, planter's box
767
00:37:44,720 --> 00:37:47,306
so that Crispin can't leave his bounds.
768
00:37:47,390 --> 00:37:50,935
And they said, "Okay, well now
George McFly wants to go right there."
769
00:37:51,936 --> 00:37:54,981
However, the one and only
truly important mark
770
00:37:55,064 --> 00:37:57,900
that they all needed to hit
was the deadline.
771
00:37:57,984 --> 00:38:02,488
We had a release date of middle of July.
So we didn't have much time.
772
00:38:02,571 --> 00:38:06,826
Well, whatever time is...
We were racing towards our preview.
773
00:38:06,909 --> 00:38:08,469
Within a matter of months...
774
00:38:08,536 --> 00:38:11,747
We were ready to take the movie
and put it in front of an audience.
775
00:38:11,831 --> 00:38:14,101
Well, "Ready" is quite
a strong word, isn't it?
776
00:38:14,125 --> 00:38:16,502
We put in some temp music for the preview.
777
00:38:16,585 --> 00:38:20,631
There were temp effects.
It wasn't very finished.
778
00:38:20,715 --> 00:38:23,175
But even still,
they were all there,
779
00:38:23,259 --> 00:38:28,014
from Bob and Bob, to Neil, to Spielberg,
and, of course, Sid Sheinberg.
780
00:38:28,097 --> 00:38:31,600
We didn't want anyone
from Universal to come and see it.
781
00:38:31,684 --> 00:38:34,103
Okay, so Sid wasn't allowed.
But nevertheless...
782
00:38:34,186 --> 00:38:35,938
You've worked really hard.
783
00:38:36,022 --> 00:38:39,567
You've spent countless hours
to get to this place,
784
00:38:39,650 --> 00:38:43,487
and then someone's gonna
now judge what you've done.
785
00:38:43,571 --> 00:38:46,032
But when,
for the first time in human history,
786
00:38:46,115 --> 00:38:48,367
an audience saw this scene...
787
00:38:52,788 --> 00:38:55,916
They get the exact opposite reaction
that they wanted.
788
00:38:59,086 --> 00:39:02,340
There was this hush over the theater.
789
00:39:02,798 --> 00:39:04,717
But what was their problem?
790
00:39:04,800 --> 00:39:07,011
They actually thought
that they had killed the dog.
791
00:39:07,094 --> 00:39:10,181
It could have been worse.
It could've been Shemp.
792
00:39:10,264 --> 00:39:12,850
Look out!
Upon realizing soon after...
793
00:39:12,933 --> 00:39:14,935
The dog is fine.
...everything changed.
794
00:39:15,019 --> 00:39:18,939
And you could just feel the audience
going, "Oh, this is so great!"
795
00:39:19,023 --> 00:39:22,193
The audience was with us.
I had never been in a preview,
796
00:39:22,276 --> 00:39:27,990
before or since, that saw an audience
rise up and be so involved in the movie.
797
00:39:28,074 --> 00:39:30,493
I finally invented something that works!
798
00:39:30,576 --> 00:39:32,745
Suddenly,
they changed their tune
799
00:39:32,828 --> 00:39:36,040
about keeping it secret from Universal,
who universally agreed...
800
00:39:36,123 --> 00:39:37,583
The movie's gonna be a hit.
801
00:39:37,666 --> 00:39:40,252
...and began immediately
rewarding the efforts
802
00:39:40,336 --> 00:39:42,797
of these now quite smug moviemakers.
803
00:39:42,880 --> 00:39:46,258
"Your reward for the big hit
is we're moving your release date up
804
00:39:46,342 --> 00:39:49,053
from the middle of July
to the July 4th weekend."
805
00:39:50,054 --> 00:39:51,555
Oh my God.
Can you do it?
806
00:39:51,639 --> 00:39:55,142
Can you get it out three weeks early?
Which wasn't enough time.
807
00:39:55,226 --> 00:39:56,268
This is nuts.
808
00:39:56,352 --> 00:39:58,771
Well, again, what is time?
Relative.
809
00:39:58,854 --> 00:40:02,400
The clock was ticking down.
Yes. Relatively expensive.
810
00:40:02,483 --> 00:40:07,071
We had everyone working
seven days a week, 24 hours a day,
811
00:40:07,154 --> 00:40:09,698
just trying to get to the finish line.
812
00:40:09,782 --> 00:40:12,910
A relay race mostly being run
by the effects wizards
813
00:40:12,993 --> 00:40:18,124
of Industrial Light and Magic,
the effects masters behind this and this.
814
00:40:18,207 --> 00:40:21,669
So at least on that front,
they were in safe hands?
815
00:40:21,752 --> 00:40:25,840
"Camera holds on Marty as he watches
his hand begin to disintegrate."
816
00:40:28,759 --> 00:40:30,636
You know Bob hates that shot.
817
00:40:30,719 --> 00:40:33,681
That shot never worked
the way we intended it to work.
818
00:40:33,764 --> 00:40:38,519
Because it looked
like a clean hole in the guy's hand.
819
00:40:38,602 --> 00:40:40,354
There were some other shots
820
00:40:40,438 --> 00:40:42,481
that people had a hard time
getting fired up about.
821
00:40:42,565 --> 00:40:45,734
The fire burning across the cable
that's strung across the street,
822
00:40:45,818 --> 00:40:48,737
it had to be hand-animated
'cause there wasn't any fire on it.
823
00:40:48,821 --> 00:40:53,659
It doesn't really look like fire.
When I see that shot, I cringe.
824
00:40:53,742 --> 00:40:56,787
But there wasn't time
to obsess over the details.
825
00:40:56,871 --> 00:40:59,290
Because this has to be
in the movie tonight...
826
00:40:59,373 --> 00:41:01,041
Talk about cutting it close.
827
00:41:01,125 --> 00:41:03,878
...in order for us to go
into the theaters for opening.
828
00:41:03,961 --> 00:41:06,046
And what an opening it was.
829
00:41:06,130 --> 00:41:09,383
The theater was sold out.
We had a couple of seats in the back.
830
00:41:09,467 --> 00:41:14,013
The audience went to their feet
in hysterical, giddy glee.
831
00:41:14,096 --> 00:41:18,100
People are clapping at the end
of the movie. People don't usually clap.
832
00:41:18,184 --> 00:41:21,520
When you work as hard as we did
on that show to achieve everything,
833
00:41:21,604 --> 00:41:24,815
then to go see it
and all of it come together so well...
834
00:41:24,899 --> 00:41:28,986
You look great. Everything looks great.
Yeah, well, he says that now.
835
00:41:29,069 --> 00:41:32,156
When the movie premiered,
Michael J. Fox wasn't even in the country.
836
00:41:32,239 --> 00:41:34,575
He was actually overseas with Family Ties,
837
00:41:34,658 --> 00:41:37,328
and he gets this phone call
from his agent.
838
00:41:37,411 --> 00:41:40,206
Michael J. Fox is immediately apologetic.
839
00:41:40,289 --> 00:41:43,000
He assumes that the movie was a disaster,
because he said,
840
00:41:43,083 --> 00:41:45,794
"I know I was sleep-deprived
and I didn't give my best."
841
00:41:45,878 --> 00:41:47,358
"I promise I'll do better next time."
842
00:41:47,421 --> 00:41:49,621
And his agent says, "No, Michael,
you don't understand."
843
00:41:49,673 --> 00:41:52,176
"This is the number one movie
at the box office."
844
00:41:52,259 --> 00:41:56,764
It pulled in
11.3 million dollars that first weekend.
845
00:41:56,847 --> 00:41:58,807
Universal was through-the-moon happy.
846
00:41:58,891 --> 00:42:01,435
My mother would clip out
how much money it was making.
847
00:42:01,519 --> 00:42:03,938
And then we became
the highest-grossing movie of the year.
848
00:42:04,021 --> 00:42:09,276
And would go on
to make 385 million dollars worldwide.
849
00:42:09,360 --> 00:42:12,363
Wherever you went,
it was Back to the Future.
850
00:42:12,863 --> 00:42:16,075
Sid was just over the moon,
jumping up and down.
851
00:42:16,158 --> 00:42:17,838
Right, yes, the Sid who said...
852
00:42:17,910 --> 00:42:21,121
Spaceman from Pluto.
...was the better title. That guy, right?
853
00:42:21,205 --> 00:42:23,791
He never said he was wrong.
854
00:42:26,085 --> 00:42:29,672
It's hard not to wonder
if the making of Back to the Future
855
00:42:29,755 --> 00:42:32,967
was just a series of events
that happened to go right
856
00:42:33,050 --> 00:42:35,344
where fate and destiny, or density,
857
00:42:35,427 --> 00:42:37,972
forged a path
through space and time itself
858
00:42:38,055 --> 00:42:41,183
to create a movie
that sort of defies description.
859
00:42:41,267 --> 00:42:46,605
Back to the Future is a comedy, adventure,
science fiction, time-travel love story.
860
00:42:46,689 --> 00:42:48,857
It's just got everything in it.
861
00:42:48,941 --> 00:42:53,821
Yeah, it's an action comedy adventure
coming-of-age film. Musical.
862
00:42:54,321 --> 00:42:58,200
Or maybe a spaceman from Pluto
did indeed visit planet Earth
863
00:42:58,284 --> 00:43:02,162
to make sure that Sid Sheinberg
absolutely did not get his way.
864
00:43:02,246 --> 00:43:06,959
Or it might be that the right people
came together at the right time
865
00:43:07,042 --> 00:43:09,420
to make a movie that's kind of timeless...
866
00:43:09,503 --> 00:43:10,421
Action!
867
00:43:10,504 --> 00:43:11,714
...even decades later.
868
00:43:11,797 --> 00:43:16,552
My God, has it been that long?
Things have certainly changed around here.
869
00:43:16,635 --> 00:43:18,637
Actually, you'd be surprised.
870
00:43:19,221 --> 00:43:21,432
We wet all this down, remember?
871
00:43:21,515 --> 00:43:24,518
Oh God, it was amazing,
everything that we did here.
872
00:43:24,602 --> 00:43:26,729
This is the Twin Pines Mall,
873
00:43:26,812 --> 00:43:30,482
an actual, well, mall
in Puente Hills just outside LA.
874
00:43:30,566 --> 00:43:35,112
I remember that! That's clearly where
the terrorists were chasing the DeLorean.
875
00:43:35,195 --> 00:43:37,197
But it was here
in this parking lot
876
00:43:37,281 --> 00:43:39,867
where cinema history really was made...
877
00:43:39,950 --> 00:43:42,536
This whole straightaway,
it's all the same.
878
00:43:42,620 --> 00:43:45,914
...when Michael J. Fox turned up
on set for the very first time.
879
00:43:45,998 --> 00:43:50,044
For me, people always ask me
what was the most memorable day.
880
00:43:50,127 --> 00:43:52,296
For me, it was
the first day Michael worked.
881
00:43:52,379 --> 00:43:53,213
Sure.
882
00:43:53,297 --> 00:43:56,258
Because this was something
unprecedented we did,
883
00:43:56,342 --> 00:43:59,887
replacing an actor
after five-and-a-half weeks of shooting.
884
00:43:59,970 --> 00:44:02,890
With a new actor.
It was a Thursday night, I remember.
885
00:44:02,973 --> 00:44:06,518
Yeah. It was a Thursday night.
We got the whole crew together
886
00:44:06,602 --> 00:44:09,563
and explained to them
that we were replacing Eric.
887
00:44:09,647 --> 00:44:14,109
And after we'd talked to the crew,
my beeper goes off. It was my wife.
888
00:44:14,193 --> 00:44:17,571
I had to run into the mall
to the pay phone and call her up.
889
00:44:17,655 --> 00:44:20,157
And she told me she was going into labor.
890
00:44:20,240 --> 00:44:23,410
My daughter Gabrielle was born
over that weekend,
891
00:44:23,494 --> 00:44:26,330
and when I came back
to work the following week,
892
00:44:26,413 --> 00:44:31,001
I had a new leading man, Michael J. Fox,
and a beautiful baby daughter.
893
00:44:31,085 --> 00:44:33,003
So when anyone ever says to me, like,
894
00:44:33,087 --> 00:44:36,256
"What's the most memorable weekend
of your life?" That's it.
895
00:44:36,340 --> 00:44:38,300
I was here when it started.
896
00:44:38,384 --> 00:44:42,554
Well, for Back to the Future,
this is only where it started.
897
00:44:42,638 --> 00:44:46,016
It's probably one of the most perfect
films that we've ever made in Hollywood.
898
00:44:46,100 --> 00:44:47,900
Because this film
was so perfect...
899
00:44:47,935 --> 00:44:49,645
Wow, look at him go!
900
00:44:49,728 --> 00:44:52,648
...that soon enough,
there was Back to the Future 2.
901
00:44:52,731 --> 00:44:54,983
Something very familiar about all this.
902
00:44:55,067 --> 00:44:57,236
And after Back to the Future 3,
903
00:44:57,319 --> 00:45:02,116
this trilogy combined for nearly
1 billion dollars in box office worldwide,
904
00:45:02,199 --> 00:45:04,201
launching careers of the crew
905
00:45:04,284 --> 00:45:07,913
and flipping Bob Zemeckis' flops to hits.
906
00:45:07,996 --> 00:45:11,208
Life was like a box of chocolates.
907
00:45:11,291 --> 00:45:14,461
With the immense success
of Back to the Future,
908
00:45:14,545 --> 00:45:17,506
it's easy to forget
that Bob and Bob's original idea...
909
00:45:17,589 --> 00:45:18,882
It's a half-baked idea.
910
00:45:18,966 --> 00:45:21,719
...had its own future
that was anything but certain.
911
00:45:21,802 --> 00:45:25,264
The screenplay was rejected,
and it would have been easy for us
912
00:45:25,347 --> 00:45:28,600
to just say, "Well,
this one isn't gonna get made."
913
00:45:28,684 --> 00:45:32,020
But we always thought that,
"This movie has to be made."
914
00:45:32,104 --> 00:45:35,941
"And, goddamn it, somehow,
we're gonna figure out how to do that."
915
00:45:36,024 --> 00:45:38,819
From name changes
to face changes,
916
00:45:38,902 --> 00:45:43,907
these filmmakers overcame every obstacle
and left nothing to fate.
917
00:45:43,991 --> 00:45:49,288
And it's kind of the message of the making
of the movie as well as the movie itself.
918
00:45:50,164 --> 00:45:53,292
We all have the ability
to control our destiny.
919
00:45:54,209 --> 00:45:58,088
Like I've always told you, put your mind
to it, you can accomplish anything.
920
00:45:58,172 --> 00:46:00,716
And it's a message
that rings true,
921
00:46:00,799 --> 00:46:04,136
no matter how difficult
life's obstacles can be.
922
00:46:05,262 --> 00:46:09,850
In 1991, Michael J. Fox
was diagnosed with Parkinson's.
923
00:46:09,933 --> 00:46:13,771
It was unbelievably devastating.
You know, this young guy...
924
00:46:13,854 --> 00:46:14,688
Yeah.
925
00:46:14,772 --> 00:46:19,526
...had this debilitating disease, and he'd
managed to cover it up for several years.
926
00:46:19,610 --> 00:46:24,615
You know, in hindsight, he told us there
were moments on both Part II and Part III,
927
00:46:24,698 --> 00:46:26,450
when redoing the "Johnny B. Goode" scene,
928
00:46:26,533 --> 00:46:28,869
his fingers weren't playing
the notes exactly.
929
00:46:28,952 --> 00:46:31,955
Or he had a limp when he was
running down the Western street.
930
00:46:32,039 --> 00:46:33,039
Right.
931
00:46:33,081 --> 00:46:36,293
When he was diagnosed,
Michael J. Fox was told
932
00:46:36,376 --> 00:46:39,046
that his acting days would soon be over.
933
00:46:40,464 --> 00:46:46,261
But like Marty McFly himself,
Michael decided to write his own future,
934
00:46:46,345 --> 00:46:50,474
which included three more decades
of award-winning performances...
935
00:46:50,557 --> 00:46:51,391
Parkinson's.
936
00:46:51,475 --> 00:46:56,063
...while also taking on a lead role
in the fight against Parkinson's.
937
00:46:56,146 --> 00:47:00,526
But as roles go,
it all began with Marty McFly,
938
00:47:00,609 --> 00:47:04,738
because it was
Michael J. Fox's first major film role
939
00:47:04,822 --> 00:47:09,785
for which he was the first choice
for this duo's first big hit
940
00:47:09,868 --> 00:47:12,579
and this first-rate crew.
941
00:47:12,663 --> 00:47:15,457
But when looking back
at this first film in the trilogy...
942
00:47:15,541 --> 00:47:17,543
You're gonna see some serious shit.
943
00:47:17,626 --> 00:47:20,671
...it's really a story about seconds.
944
00:47:20,754 --> 00:47:23,882
Time is the only thing
money can't buy,
945
00:47:24,466 --> 00:47:26,802
and it can't be replaced in any way.
946
00:47:26,885 --> 00:47:28,220
I'm late for school!
947
00:47:28,303 --> 00:47:32,891
Time goes only one way so far,
and we never get it back.
948
00:47:34,434 --> 00:47:36,937
You never know what the future will bring.
81667
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