'Back to the Future' Writer Reveals Real Reason Why Original Star Was Fired After One Month of Filmingoriginally appeared onParade. Over four decades since its original release to theaters,Back to the Futurecontinues to amaze and delight mainstream audiences across the globe. Quite possibly the most famous film of the 1980s,Back to the Futurehas long since transcended the heights of pop culture, acquiring a fabled place in the hearts and minds of the average movie-goer. Featuring sharp writing, an electric soundtrack, vividly-drawn characters and unforgettable acting performances,Back to the Futureremains, in almost every way, the perfect film. But in its earliest days of filming, the 1985 sci-fi classic might have looked startlingly different. In a recent interview withThe Guardiancommemorating the film's 40th anniversary,Back to the Future's original co-writer, Bob Gale, spoke about the production's abrupt decision to dismiss Eric Stoltz after several weeks of filming. As most dedicatedBack to the Futurefans likely know, Stoltz had been cast in the role of Marty McFly, filming a majority of the character's scenes for four to six weeks of continuous filming. As the 74-year-old Gale revealed toThe Guardian, however, the crew behindBack to the Futureultimately decided to recast Stoltz's starring role in the film, believing he was taking the character "too seriously" for the movie's otherwise light-hearted tone. "He wasn't giving us the kind of humor that we thought the character should have," Gale elaborated. "He actually thought the movie turned out to be a tragedy because he ends up in a 1985 where a lot of his life is different." Fortunately, Gale went on to say that director Robert Zemeckis, who informed Stoltz that he had been removed from the film, told him thePulp Fictionactor was happy to depart from the film. "[Zemeckis] said he thought that possibly Eric was relieved: it was not like a devastating blow to him," Gale said. "This is just hindsight and speculation but maybe Eric's agents thought that it would be a good career move for him to do a movie like this that had Spielberg involved. Who knows?" Following Stoltz's dismissal, Michael J. Fox was promptly cast as the puckish teenage time traveler. The rest, as they say, is history. 'Back to the Future' Writer Reveals Real Reason Why Original Star Was Fired After One Month of Filmingfirst appeared on Parade on Jul 9, 2025 This story was originally reported byParadeon Jul 9, 2025, where it first appeared.