Back to the Future
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141 free Back to the Future trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
63 free Back to the Future trivia questions with answers. Sixty-three questions on the Back to the Future trilogy, from the DeLorean and the flux capacitor to the clock tower, Marty's guitar and Doc's train. The core round covers the 1985 original and its 1955 time-travel, the cast, the making of the films and the running gags that fans quote by heart. There is also a dedicated Back to the Future Part II round: the trip to 21 October 2015, the hoverboard chase, Grays Sports Almanac, old Biff, the alternate 1985 with George dead and Biff married to Lorraine, Elisabeth Shue replacing Claudia Wells, Crispin Glover's lawsuit, the Cubs prediction, self-lacing Nikes, Jaws 19 and the lightning strike that sends Doc to 1885. Easy questions on the plot, harder ones on the production and the box office. Every answer was checked against a documented source and the citation is shown under each explanation.
30 of 141 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01How many years into the past is Marty McFly accidentally sent in the first film?
30
He leaves on October 26, 1985 and lands on November 5, 1955, the day Doc conceived the flux capacitor.
Q 02Which carmaker offered $75,000 to have one of its models replace the DeLorean as the time machine?
Ford
Ford offered $75,000 to swap in a Mustang; the producers declined because the writers felt Doc Brown could never be seen driving a Mustang.
Q 03What is Doc Brown's first name?
Emmett
Marty and Jennifer simply call him 'Doc'; his full name is Dr. Emmett Lathrop Brown.
Q 04What is the critical speed the time machine needs to reach for time travel?
88 miles per hour
Doc Brown states that the DeLorean must reach exactly 88 miles per hour for the time circuits to activate.
Q 05What element does Doc Brown steal from Libyan terrorists to power the time machine?
Plutonium
Plutonium: Doc took it from Libyan terrorists who believed he was building them a bomb, handing them a casing stuffed with used pinball-machine parts instead.
Q 06Who portrays the character of Marty McFly in the film?
Michael J. Fox
Michael J. Fox famously stars as the time-traveling teenager Marty McFly, a role that cemented his status as a major Hollywood star.
Q 07Who plays the bully Biff Tannen in all three Back to the Future films?
Thomas F. Wilson
Thomas F. Wilson also plays Biff's ancestor Buford and grandson Griff, and voiced the character in the animated series.
Q 08What iconic invention by Doc Brown enables time travel within the DeLorean?
Flux Capacitor
The Flux Capacitor, a key component of Doc Brown's time machine, is what 'makes time travel possible'.
Q 09Which studio put Back to the Future into turnaround after first developing the script?
Columbia Pictures
Columbia thought the script too sweet for the raunchy teen-comedy era; it was eventually traded to Universal for a Double Indemnity spoof called Big Trouble.
Q 10What mall parking lot does Doc Brown first reveal the time machine to Marty?
Twin Pines Mall
The time travel experiment and subsequent accidental trip to 1955 take place in the parking lot of Twin Pines Mall.
Q 11What is the name of Marty's girlfriend in 1985?
Jennifer Parker
Jennifer was recast for the sequels, with Elisabeth Shue taking over the role.
Q 12What musical instrument does Marty play in his band?
Guitar
Guitar: Marty plays lead guitar in a four-piece rock band whose school-dance audition is cut off for being 'just too darn loud'.
Q 13What phrase does Doc Brown often exclaim when surprised or making a discovery?
"Great Scott!"
Doc Brown is known for his enthusiastic exclamation, 'Great Scott!', particularly when excited or making a significant scientific realization.
Q 21The Courthouse Square set used for the town square stands on which studio's backlot?
Universal
Universal Studios' Courthouse Square, built on the backlot in 1948 for An Act of Murder; the same square doubled for Gremlins and Bruce Almighty.
Q 22Who directed the film 'Back to the Future'?
Robert Zemeckis
Robert Zemeckis directed all three films, shooting the two sequels back to back in 1989 after the first became 1985's biggest hit.
Q 23What is George McFly's hobby, which eventually leads to his success in the altered timeline?
Writing science fiction
In the original timeline, George secretly writes science fiction stories, a talent that flourishes after Marty's intervention, making him a successful author.
Q 14What is the name of the dance where George and Lorraine are supposed to first kiss?
Enchantment Under the Sea
The 'Enchantment Under the Sea Dance' is the pivotal event where Marty must ensure his parents, George and Lorraine, fall in love.
Q 15What natural phenomenon is used to power the DeLorean's return trip to 1985?
A lightning strike
With no plutonium available in 1955, Doc rigs a cable from the courthouse clock so the bolt can feed the DeLorean at the exact moment it hits.
Q 16How much power does Doc say the time machine needs to make a jump?
1.21 gigawatts
1.21 gigawatts. Doc pronounces it 'jigowatts', a pronunciation the writers picked up from a physicist they consulted while working on the script.
Q 17What song does Marty perform at the dance that his parents attend?
"Johnny B. Goode"
"Johnny B. Goode" on a red Gibson ES-345, ending with a Van Halen-style solo the 1955 crowd is not ready for: 'your kids are gonna love it'.
Q 18What nickname does Lorraine give Marty in 1955, due to his underwear?
Calvin Klein
After Marty is hit by her father's car, Lorraine finds him wearing 'Calvin Klein' underwear, which she mistakes for his name.
Q 19Before the script settled on a sheepdog, what kind of animal was Doc Brown's pet originally written as?
A chimpanzee
The chimp was to be named Shemp; a studio executive reportedly warned that films with chimps never made money.
Q 20Which scientist is Doc Brown's dog, the first-ever time traveller, named after?
Einstein
Einstein, the sheepdog who rides the DeLorean on its first trip; Doc's 1955 dog Copernicus shows the same habit of naming pets after scientists.
Q 24Who originally played Marty McFly for several weeks of filming before being replaced?
Eric Stoltz
Eric Stoltz's dramatic take was judged wrong for the comedy; his replacement then had to shoot nights while filming Family Ties by day.
Q 25What year was 'Back to the Future' originally released in theaters?
1985
The film 'Back to the Future' premiered in theaters on July 3, 1985, becoming a major box office success.
Q 26What piece of Marty's 1985 clothing do 1955 locals mistake for a life preserver?
A down vest
A down vest: Marty's orange sleeveless puffer baffles 1955, with Lou asking if he jumped ship and Lorraine's father asking why he wears a life preserver.
Q 27Which Huey Lewis and the News song was written as the film's theme?
The Power of Love
'The Power of Love': Huey Lewis agreed to give the film the next song he wrote; it became the band's first Billboard number one and earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.
Q 28What phrase does Marty use to describe something as 'cool' or 'intense' in 1985, confusing Doc Brown?
"Heavy"
Marty's frequent use of the word 'heavy' to describe intense situations in 1985 leads to Doc Brown humorously questioning the gravitational pull of the future.
Q 29What insult does the school principal throw at Marty while comparing him to his father?
Slacker
'Slacker': the principal tells Marty he is a slacker just like his father, adding that no McFly ever amounted to anything in the history of Hill Valley.
Q 30What is the name of Marty's older brother?
Dave
Dave is played by Marc McClure, better known as Jimmy Olsen in the Christopher Reeve Superman films.