Back To The Future's Original DeLorean Plan Would Have 100% Ruined The Movie

Summary

The time-traveling DeLorean is arguably themost iconic movie carever created, but in the original script for the movie, Marty and Doc Brown weren’t using a vehicle at all. Instead, the first draft ofBack to the FuturehadDoc Brown using a kitchen refrigerator as his time machine. According toFar Out Magazine, the fridge would’ve housed a machine called a “power converter” that needed to be powered by a nuclear blast in order to travel back in time. While this idea might seem fun on the surface, its inclusion could’ve killedBack to the Futurebefore it was even released.

Back to the Futureis widely considered among thegreatest movies of all time, and it’s the film’s willingness to be a little silly and self-aware that makes it such a fun viewing experience. The characters aren’t perfect, the jokes are always funny, and the story is infinitely creative - but there are limits. The film knows when it’s going too far, reigning itself in with certain sci-fi rules (the car going 88mph, for example) in order to ensure that it feels at leastsomewhatreal. That’s what makesBack to the Futuregreat, anda time-traveling fridge would’ve ruined that.

imagery-from-Back-To-The-Future

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Back To The Future’s Refrigerator Plan Would Have Been Terrible

The Refrigerator Could Have Killed The Movie

On paper, the original DeLorean plan could’ve been funny - the idea of Marty stepping into a fridge and being thrown into a nuclear blast could easily be played for laughs, but it definitely toes the line of being a little too slapstick. The DeLorean works better because it’s at least somewhat real: it’s a recognizable car that exists in real life, and it’s already used for transportation purposes, so thesuspension of disbelief isn’t too huge. Turning a fridge into a vehicle would’ve been hard to believe, and having this scene at the beginning of the movie would’ve deterred some.

Interestingly,Back to the Future’s original fridge ideaappeared later inIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skullwhen the titular character gets inside a refrigerator in order to survive a nuclear blast. It quickly becamethe most controversial scene in the movie, not just because of how ridiculous it was, but because it ruined the stakes of the story by essentially making Indy feel like he couldn’t exist in reality. The negative reaction to this scene inIndiana Jonesbasically proves that it wouldn’t have worked inBack to the Futureeither.

A fridge in a nuclear explosion in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Why Back To The Future Switched From A Refrigerator To A Car

The Last-Minute Decision Saved The Film

There are two main reasons thatBack to the Futureswitched from a fridge to car: the first, as already mentioned, was that it seemed too ridiculous. The film needed to ease the audience into this story, with most of the weird time travel antics happening in the second act, once the viewers were already hooked and engaged. Leading with such a ridiculous idea would have immediately caused some viewers to tune out of the story. The DeLorean became an integral part of the story that allowed fortimeline changes and alternate versions inBack to the Future.

However, the main reason that Spielberg pushed against the time-traveling refrigerator was out of fear that its inclusion could be held responsible for any fridge-related incidents following the release of the film. Many fridges in the ‘80s were fitted with a latch that prevented food from going stale, but this actually caused several deaths of children who managed to get locked inside. Spielberg didn’t want to invite the possibility of causing any more tragic incidents, sothe vehicle was changed.

Back to the Future II Delorean Being Struck by Lightning

No Way Back To The Future Would Have Become As Iconic With A Refrigerator Time Machine

The DeLorean Has Become A Symbol Of The Sci-Fi Franchise

The decision to change from a fridge to a DeLorean was probably the smartest choice thatBack to the Futurecould’ve made. From a marketing perspective, it would have been almost impossible to use the refrigerator as a symbol for the movie - everybody has one in their house, and it’s not recognizable at all. ButDeLoreans are a very specific type of car that has unique features, meaning that any toys, posters, DVDs, or memorabilia forBack to the Futurecould use it.

[The DeLorean] is almost exclusively thought of as “theBack to the Futurecar”, which has helped it survive in pop culture memory in a way that a refrigerator never would’ve been able to do.

AlthoughDeLoreans weren’t that successful in real life, that’s arguably only made the model even more iconic. It’s slightly unfamiliar and unconventional to modern audiences, which helps with the sci-fi feel that Zemeckis wanted to achieve with this movie. The car is almost exclusively thought of as “theBack to the Futurecar”, which has helped it survive in pop culture memory in a way that a refrigerator never would’ve been able to do. Ditching the fridge idea may have completely savedBack to the Futurebefore it was even filmed, which can’t be said about many films.