Entertainment
Back to the Future Cowriter Responds to Calls for Sequel: ‘F— You’
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Back to the Future co-writer Bob Gale has emphatically denied that a fourth film in the beloved franchise will ever be made.
“People always say, ‘When are you guys going to do Back to the Future 4? And we say, ‘F— you!’ You can quote me on that,” Gale, 73, joked at the Saturn Awards on Sunday, February 2.
Gale was accepting the George Pal Memorial Award in honor of the 40th anniversary of Back to the Future‘s release on July 3, 1985 when he pointed to the film’s hit Broadway musical adaptation as the official continuation of the franchise.
“We made three terrific movies and people kept asking for more Back to the Future so we made Back to the Future: The Musical… we’re taking it around the world,” Gale explained.
The screenwriter later quipped: “My god, Back to the Future, I’m going to be doing it for the rest of my life! Who can ask for anything more?”
Gale co-wrote Back to the Future: The Musical with two-time Grammy-winning composer Alan Silvestri and lyricist Glen Ballard, who has written hits with Michael Jackson, Alanis Morissette and Wilson Phillips.
Back to the Future: The Musical officially opened in London’s West End at the Adelphi Theatre in September 2021, before winning the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical in 2022.
Franchise stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd and Lea Thompson reunited in July 2023 to attend the stage adaptation’s Broadway premiere at the Winter Garden Theatre; that run wrapped up in January 2025.
A North American tour followed for Back to the Future: The Musical in 2024, with further adaptations planned for Australia and Japan as well as a production on board Royal Caribbean International’s cruiseliner Star of the Seas later in 2025.
The franchise may be a pop culture phenomenon today but filming on the 1985 blockbuster was notoriously rocky. Eric Stoltz was originally cast by director Robert Zemeckis to play Marty McFly, but he was eventually replaced by Fox just over one month into shooting.
Thompson, who played Marty McFly’s mother Lorraine Baines McFly, confessed on the “Still Here Hollywood” podcast in October 2024 that she initially gave Fox the cold shoulder on set because of her friendship with Stoltz. The actress admitted to doubting whether Fox was a good fit for Back to the Future‘s leading role because he was primarily known as a TV actor at the time from starring on Family Ties.
Thompson, 63, was eventually won over by Fox, revealing in her podcast interview: “[Fox] was so funny and so fun to act with. I had done some scenes with Eric already and then had to redo them with Michael so I could see how they were completely different scenes.”
Back to the Future went on to become the highest-grossing movie of 1985 with ticket sales exceeding $380 million worldwide and was subsequently placed in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for its significance and influence.
Fox, Lloyd and Thompson all returned for Back to the Future Part II and Part III, which were filmed back-to-back and released in 1989 and 1990, respectively.
Lloyd, 86, spoke to Us Weekly about the 30th anniversary of Back to the Future in 2015, where he shared his amazement at the impact of playing Doc Brown.
“Who imagined that 30 years later we’d be celebrating the way we have been this week? I’ve met so many people along the way who tell stories about Back to the Future, how profoundly it affected them,” Lloyd told Us. “I don’t know how much further it can go, but it’s an extraordinarily unique experience. I feel very fortunate to be a part of it.”
Back to the Future is streaming on Prime Video and Apple TV+.
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