October 12, 2024

‘Back to the Future’ Franchise: What’s Canon and What Isn’t

“Back to the Future” is arguably one of the best time travel films ever made, and it has spawned video games, comic books, a cartoon and even a ride. But what’s considered considered canon in the “Back to the Future” franchise? Here’s a breakdown of all that is “Back to the Future” to find out.

The Sequels

This may seem like a no-brianer, but not every film sequel is considered canon. 2018’s “Halloween,” for example, is a sequel to the original 1978 film, making much of the movies in the franchise non-canon. However, “Back to the Future Part II” and “Back to the Future Part III” are direct sequels to the original film. Picking up exactly where the first film ends, “Part II” has Doc, Marty and Jennifer healing to the future of 2015 to straighten out some trouble that Marty Jr. gets into, while  “Part III” follows Marty trip to 1885 to rescue Doc from an early demise at the hands of Buford “Mad Dog” Tannen.

VERDICT: Canon

Back to the Future: The Animated Series

Like many successful films of the ‘90s, “Back to the Future” got its own Saturday morning cartoon. The series follows the further time travel adventures of Marty and Doc, along with Doc’s wife Clara and their two boys, Jules and Verne. Despite being developed by “Back to the Future co-creator Bob Gale, featuring voice contributions from Mary Steenburgen and Tom Wilson, and a weekly live-action appearance from Christopher Lloyd, “Back to the Future: The Animated Series” doesn’t quite cut the mustard. While it’s a fun show, it leans toward silly and fairly caroony-like storylines, and stretches the believability of the tech and time-travel rules.

VERDIT: Non-canon

Back to the Future: The Ride

Opening at Universal Studios in 1991, riders of the simulation ride engaged in a race through time in pursuit of Biff Tannen, who has stolen the Delorean time machine. Aiding in the adventure is Doc Brown and the newly established Time Travel Institute’s eight-passenger Delorean. The mechanics the ride were ground-breaking at the time, but unfortunately, the story doesn’t hold up. The ride was a blast, and while it predominantly features Christopher Lloyd and Tom Wilson, Doc establishing a very notable institute and inviting the public to tour contradicts the film’s version of Doc’s attitude toward time travel. 

VERDIT: Non-canon

Back to the Future: The Game

After a handful of very unsuccessful attempts at creating a “Back to the Future” video game in the ‘80s and ‘90s, Telltale Games finally delivered a winner in 2010. While previous games were just adaptations of the films, “Back to the Future: The Game” is a brand new story, taking place six months after “Part III.”  The game has Marty heading back to 1931 to rescue Doc, enlisting the help of a reluctant teenage version of Doc to do so. The game features voice work from Christopher Lloyd, Tom Wilson, original Jennifer Claudia Wells, and even a cameo from Michael J. Fox. According to Bob Gale, the game is not technically part of the series canon, though he stated that it is possible that it could take place in an alternate timeline.

VERDICT:  Non-canon

Back to the Future Comic Books

After years of fans wondering if there would be a sequel to “Part III,” Bob Gale finally produced one. Sort of. In 2015, IDW launched the “Back to the Future” comic book, a series overseen and sometimes written by Bob Gale. The series continued the adventures of Doc and Marty, and also delved into the history of the characters, including a backstory as to how Doc and Marty met. This one is a bit tricker, as Gale has stated the comics are a “What If…?,” but he has also stated that we were finally getting answers to some long burning questions.

VERDIT: Canon

While not everything tied to the “Back to the Future” franchise is considered canon, let’s not forget that anything is possible in an alternate timeline. That said, it’s quite possible that everything we see in the world of “Back to the Future” is canon somewhere.

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