You Won’t Believe What the DeLorean Was Originally Supposed to Be!

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It’s tough to envision the well-known DeLorean from Back to the Future as anything but what it is. In a series so popular and iconic, with characters like Marty McFly and Doc Brown time-traveling, it seems only fitting that a car would be involved. However, interestingly enough, this wasn’t the initial concept, which adds to the surprise. Given that the story was initially not anticipated to have a sequel and had been turned down several times, it’s not surprising that the script underwent numerous revisions to get it just right. But what was the original idea? How did this transformation occur?

Time machines in fiction can take various shapes and forms, such as a telephone box in ‘Doctor Who’ or merely a chair in the 1960s novel ‘The Time Machine’. In the case of Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale’s idea for ‘Back to the Future’, they envisioned a refrigerator. Marty McFly would have to enter the fridge, which would then be loaded onto a truck, followed by a nuclear explosion that would activate it and send him back in time. This process involved several steps and could potentially be too absurd or even confusing. Additionally, there was concern about children viewing the film, as the refrigerator setup seemed odd. However, the main challenge lay in another area – making sure the story remained coherent despite the unusual method of time travel concealed within a common household appliance.

In the past, there was a concern that some children might imitate what they saw on TV by attempting to enter a refrigerator, as many refrigerators were equipped with safety latches, making it impossible for someone inside to open them from within. This posed a genuine risk, leading to the need for reconsideration of the design. As a result, they decided to transform the time machine into a vehicle, specifically a car. However, not just any car was chosen; the DeLorean model was selected for several reasons. Firstly, it was on the verge of becoming obsolete, ensuring that in the future, it would be remembered as the car from Back to the Future. Secondly, its distinctive design – with gull-wing doors and a stainless steel body – resembled a UFO, making it an ideal fit for the narrative.

Indeed, car manufacturers spotted an opening in these circumstances. For instance, Ford attempted to capitalize on this by proposing $75,000 to swap the DeLorean with a Mustang. This move would have significantly boosted their marketing efforts – similar to how fans genuinely thought hoverboards were viable after the movie “Back to the Future Part II,” leading Mattel to receive numerous inquiries about them. However, when it came to preserving the integrity of the franchise, they refused to make any concessions. Gale swiftly nixed the idea, stating emphatically, “Doc Brown doesn’t drive a common car like a Mustang.

Despite being a bit tricky to handle, Gale mentioned that the DeLorean frequently malfunctioned during filming. “Minor issues on the vehicle would crop up during a scene, forcing us to halt production until our FX team fixed them,” he confessed. For shooting purposes, they had three distinct DeLoreans: one for stunts, another for special effects, and a third for close-ups that resembled something Doc Brown might have crafted himself – a plausible creation of a mad scientist. To enhance the illusion further, they swapped out the original speedometer (which maxed out at 85 mph due to regulations) with one displaying 95 mph.

Fundamentally, Zemeckis aimed for the audience not to be overwhelmed by the technical workings of the DeLorean in Back to the Future. Instead, he desired time travel to appear intuitive and cinematic, rather than scientific. Consequently, the transition was designed to be swift and intense (dubbed as “time slice”). The intention was to portray the car as forcefully tearing through reality instead of just vanishing smoothly, which undeniably added an extra layer of memorability to the time travel sequences and the DeLorean itself.

Eventually, it’s not just a movie vehicle – it’s a piece of historical entertainment. The original DeLorean from the films is now exhibited at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, serving as evidence of the creativity and groundbreaking innovation behind the Back to the Future craze. Granted, it wasn’t the most dependable car, but it certainly became one of the most iconic vehicles in popular culture.

The Back to the Future trilogy is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

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2025-04-06 22:10