Editing Back to the Future Part II

{{short description|1989 film by Robert Zemeckis}}
{{use American English|date=August 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox film
| name                 = Back to the Future Part II
| image                = Back to the Future Part II.jpg
| alt                  = Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd stepping out of a partially-visible DeLorean vehicle, looking astonishingly at their wristwatches. The logo of the film appears on the top left, while the tagline "Getting back was only the beginning" appears on the top right.
| caption              = Theatrical release poster by [[Drew Struzan]]
| director             = [[Robert Zemeckis]]
| screenplay           = [[Bob Gale]]
| story                = {{Plainlist|
* Robert Zemeckis
* Bob Gale
}}
| based_on             = {{Based on|[[List of Back to the Future characters|Characters]]|Robert Zemeckis|Bob Gale}}
| producer             = {{Plainlist|
* Bob Gale
* [[Neil Canton]]
}}
| starring             = {{Plainlist|<!--Per poster billing-->
* [[Michael J. Fox]]
* [[Christopher Lloyd]]
* [[Lea Thompson]]
* [[Thomas F. Wilson]]
}}
| cinematography       = [[Dean Cundey]]
| editing              = {{Plainlist|
* [[Arthur Schmidt (film editor)|Arthur Schmidt]]
* [[Harry Keramidas]]
}}
| music                = [[Alan Silvestri]]
| production_companies = [[Amblin Entertainment]]
| distributor          = [[Universal Pictures]]
| released             = {{Film date|1989|11|22}}
| runtime              = 108 minutes<!--Theatrical runtime: 108:06--><ref>{{cite web | url = https://bbfc.co.uk/releases/back-future-part-ii-1970-0 | title = ''Back to the Future Part II'' (PG) | publisher = [[British Board of Film Classification]] | date = November 22, 1989 | access-date = June 21, 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150623081057/http://bbfc.co.uk/releases/back-future-part-ii-1970-0 | archive-date = June 23, 2015 | url-status = dead}}</ref>
| country              = United States
| language             = English
| budget               = $40 million<ref name=BOM />
| gross                = $332 million<ref name="BOM">{{cite web |url= https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0096874/ |title=Back to the Future II (1989) |website=[[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=December 31, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130134734/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=backtothefuture2.htm |archive-date=January 30, 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
'''''Back to the Future Part II''''' is a 1989 American [[science fiction film]] directed by [[Robert Zemeckis]] from a screenplay by [[Bob Gale]]; both wrote the story. It is a [[sequel]] to the 1985 film ''[[Back to the Future]]'' and the second installment in the [[Back to the Future (franchise)|''Back to the Future'' franchise]]. The film stars [[Michael J. Fox]], [[Christopher Lloyd]], [[Lea Thompson]] and [[Thomas F. Wilson]], with [[Elisabeth Shue]] (replacing [[Claudia Wells]]) and [[Jeffrey Weissman]] (replacing [[Crispin Glover]]) in supporting roles. It follows [[Marty McFly]] (Fox) and his friend [[Emmett Brown|Doctor Emmett "Doc" Brown]] (Lloyd) as they travel from 1985 to 2015 to prevent the former's son from tarnishing their family's future. When their arch-nemesis [[Biff Tannen]] (Wilson) steals the [[DeLorean time machine]] and uses it to alter history for his benefit, the duo must return to 1955 to set things right.

The film was produced on a $40 million budget and was filmed [[Back to back film production|back to back]] with its sequel ''[[Back to the Future Part III|Part III]]''. Filming began in February 1989, after two years were spent building the sets and writing the scripts. ''Back to the Future Part II'' was also a ground-breaking project for visual effects studio [[Industrial Light & Magic]] (ILM). In addition to [[digital compositing]], ILM used the VistaGlide motion control camera system, which allowed an actor to portray multiple characters simultaneously on-screen without sacrificing camera movement.

''Back to the Future Part II'' was released by [[Universal Pictures]] on November 22, 1989. Though the film received mostly positive reviews, it was deemed inferior to its predecessor by critics at the time of release. In the years since, the film has been reappraised and is now considered one of the [[List of films considered the best|best sequel and science fiction films of all time]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://screenrant.com/back-future-part-2-reviews-reactions-mixed-reason/ | title = Why Back To The Future 2's Reviews Were Way Worse Than The First Movie's | first = Niall | last = Gray | date = May 23, 2022 | access-date = August 14, 2024 | work = [[Screen Rant]] | archive-date = May 23, 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220523230958/https://screenrant.com/back-future-part-2-reviews-reactions-mixed-reason/ | url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/how-audience-responses-to-the-back-to-future-sequels-have-evolved/ | title = Why Fan Response to the Back to the Future Sequels Changed | first = Chris | last = Cummins | date = October 23, 2020 | access-date = August 14, 2024 | work = [[Den of Geek]] | archive-date = November 1, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201101074149/https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/how-audience-responses-to-the-back-to-future-sequels-have-evolved/ | url-status = live}}</ref> The film grossed $332 million dollars worldwide in its initial run, making it the [[1989 in film#Highest-grossing films|third-highest-grossing film of 1989]]. ''Part III'' followed on May 25, 1990, concluding the trilogy.

==Plot==
<!-- Per WP:FILMPLOT, plot summaries for featured films should be between 400-700 words. Current word count 627-->
On October 26, 1985, [[Emmett Brown|Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown]] arrives unexpectedly in the [[DeLorean time machine]]. He persuades [[Marty McFly]] and his girlfriend, [[List of Back to the Future characters|Jennifer Parker]], to [[Time travel|travel to the future]] with him{{refn|group=N|As depicted at the end of ''[[Back to the Future]]'' (1985)}} and help their future children, with [[Biff Tannen]] witnessing their departure. Once they arrive in 2015, Doc incapacitates Jennifer, leaving her asleep in an alley to avoid letting her learn about her own future. Doc explains that their son [[Marty McFly Jr.|Marty Jr.]] will be arrested for participating in a robbery with Biff's grandson [[List of Back to the Future characters|Griff]], leading to a chain of events that destroys the McFly family.

Doc instructs Marty to switch places with the identical Marty Jr. and refuse Griff's offer, but Griff goads Marty into a fight by calling him "chicken", and a subsequent [[hoverboard]] chase ensues. Griff and his gang are arrested, saving Marty's future children. Before rejoining Doc, Marty purchases an [[almanac]] containing the results of major sporting events from 1950 to 2000. Doc discovers it and warns Marty about profiting from time travel. Before Doc can adequately dispose of it, they are interrupted by the police, who have found Jennifer incapacitated and are taking her to her 2015 home. They pursue, as does an elderly Biff, who has overheard their conversation and retrieved the discarded almanac.

Jennifer wakes up in her 2015 home and hides from the McFly family. She overhears that her future life with Marty is not what she expected, due to his involvement in an automobile accident, and witnesses Marty being goaded by his co-worker, [[Douglas Needles]], into a shady business deal, resulting in his firing. Jennifer tries to escape the house but faints after encountering her 2015 self. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Marty and Doc, Biff steals the time machine and returns it. Marty and Doc return to 1985, leaving an unconscious Jennifer on her front porch to sleep off the day's events as a dream.

Marty gradually realizes that the 1985 they have returned to is not the one he knows. Biff, having used the almanac to secure a fortune, is now one of the country's wealthiest and most corrupt men. He has turned Hill Valley into a chaotic [[dystopia]], secretly killed Marty's father, [[List of Back to the Future characters|George]], in 1973, and forced Marty's mother, [[List of Back to the Future characters|Lorraine]], to marry him. Meanwhile, this timeline's version of Doc has been committed to a [[Psychiatric hospital|mental hospital]]. Doc deduces that old Biff took the time machine to give his younger self the almanac, and Marty learns from the alternate 1985 Biff that he received it on November 12, 1955.{{refn|group=N|The same date as the dance Marty attended in ''[[Back to the Future]]''.}} Biff, acting on his future self's advice, tries to kill Marty, but he flees with Doc to 1955.

Marty secretly follows the 1955 Biff and watches him receive the almanac from his 2015 self. Marty then follows him to the high school dance, carefully avoiding interrupting the events from his previous visit, and being forced to intervene when Biff's gang goes after the other Marty performing onstage. Marty finally gets the almanac, but loses it after being again goaded into a fight with Biff. Marty chases after Biff's car on the hoverboard, getting the almanac back as Biff is left to crash into a manure truck for the second time in a week.

Marty burns the almanac, nullifying the changes to the timeline that it had caused, as Doc hovers above in the time machine. Before Marty can join him, the DeLorean is struck by lightning and disappears. A [[Western Union]] courier arrives immediately after and delivers a letter to Marty; it is from Doc, who tells him that the lightning strike transported him 70 years in the past to 1885.{{refn|group=N|The letter's contents are later explored further in ''[[Back to the Future Part III]]'' (1990)}} Marty races back into town to find the 1955 Doc, who had just helped the other Marty to return to 1985. Shocked by Marty's sudden reappearance, Doc faints.

==Cast==
{{See also|List of Back to the Future characters{{!}}List of ''Back to the Future'' characters}}
[[File:Bttf2cast.png|thumb|275px|alt=Portrait photos of the stars of the film: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Thomas F. Wilson, Elisabeth Shue and Jeffrey Weissman|The cast of the film including (l–r, top row) [[Michael J. Fox]], [[Christopher Lloyd]], [[Lea Thompson]], (bottom row) [[Thomas F. Wilson]], [[Elisabeth Shue]] and [[Jeffrey Weissman]]]]
{{Cast listing|
<!--DO NOT LINK CHARACTERS! THEY ARE ALREADY LINKED ABOVE AND A SEPARATE LINK TO THE CHARACTER LIST IS AT THE TOP OF THIS SECTION. Cast list as shown in the same order as after the cut-to-black at the end of the film.-->
* [[Michael J. Fox]] as:
** Marty McFly
** Marty McFly Jr.
** Marlene McFly
* [[Christopher Lloyd]] as Dr. Emmett Brown
* [[Lea Thompson]] as Lorraine Baines-McFly
* [[Thomas F. Wilson]] as:
** Biff Tannen
** Griff
** Gertrude Tannen (voice)
}}

[[Elisabeth Shue]] replaces [[Claudia Wells]] as Jennifer Parker and [[Jeffrey Weissman]] replaces [[Crispin Glover]] as George McFly, though Glover appears in archive footage from the first film. [[James Tolkan]] reprises his role as Mr. Strickland, as do [[Billy Zane]], [[Casey Siemaszko]] and [[J. J. Cohen]] as Biff's cronies Match, 3-D and Skinhead.

Griff's gang in 2015 includes [[Ricky Dean Logan]] as Data, [[Darlene Vogel]] as Spike and [[Jason Scott Lee]] as Whitey. [[Stephanie E. Williams]] plays Officer Foley, while Zemeckis' then-wife [[Mary Ellen Trainor]] has an uncredited role as Officer Reese. [[Flea (musician)|Flea]] appears as Marty's coworker Douglas J. Needles and [[Jim Ishida|James Ishida]] plays his boss Mr. Fujitsu. [[Donald Fullilove]], who played Goldie Wilson in the first film, makes an uncredited appearance as his hovercar salesman grandson Goldie Wilson III. A young [[Elijah Wood]] is one of the two boys Marty teaches to play ''Wild Gunman''.

In the alternate 1985, [[Al White]] portrays the patriarch of the family living in the McFly house. [[Neil Ross]] provides the voiceover for the Biff Tannen museum while [[George Buck Flower]] reprises his role as Red the Bum.

In 1955, [[Harry Waters Jr.]] reprises his role as Marvin Berry, [[Lisa Freeman]] reprises her role as Babs, [[Wesley Mann]] plays a student who mistakes Marty for a thief, and [[Joe Flaherty]] plays the Western Union representative who delivers Doc's letter. [[Charles Fleischer]] plays Terry, who in 2015 indirectly gives Marty the idea to use time travel to bet on sports, and in 1955 is Biff's mechanic.

==Development==
Director [[Robert Zemeckis]] said that initially, a sequel was not planned for the first film, but its huge box office success led to the conception of a second installment. He later agreed to do a sequel, but only if Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd returned as well. With Fox and Lloyd confirmed, Zemeckis met with screenwriting partner [[Bob Gale]] to create a story for the sequel. Zemeckis and Gale would later regret that they ended the first one with Jennifer in the car with Marty and Doc Brown, because it required them to come up with a story that would fit her in, rather than a whole new adventure.<ref name=making />

Gale wrote most of the first draft by himself as Zemeckis was busy making ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]''. At first, the film's third act was to take place in 1967 where Lorraine was a flower child [[Vietnam War protest|protesting the war]] and George was a college professor at [[University of Berkeley|Berkeley]], but Zemeckis later stated that the [[time paradox]]es of it provided a good opportunity to go back to 1955 and see the first film's events in a different light. While most of the original cast agreed to return, a major stumbling block arose when negotiating Crispin Glover's fee for reprising the role of George McFly. When it became clear that he would not return, the role was rewritten so that George is dead when the action takes place in the alternative version of 1985.<ref name=making>{{cite video | people = [[Robert Zemeckis]], [[Bob Gale]] | chapter = Back to the Future Feature: Making the Trilogy Part 2 | title = Back to the Future Part II | type = DVD | publisher = [[Universal Pictures]]| location = Los Angeles | year = 2005}}</ref>

The greatest challenge was the creation of the futuristic vision of Marty's hometown in 2015. Production designer [[Rick Carter]] wanted to create a very detailed image with a different tone from the film ''[[Blade Runner]]'', wishing to get past the smoke and chrome. Carter and his crew spent months plotting, planning, and preparing Hill Valley's transformation into a city of the future.<ref name=featurette /> Visual effects art director John Bell said that they had no script to work with, only the indications that the setting would be 30 years into the future featuring "something called hoverboards".<ref name=up />

When writing the script for ''Part II'', Gale wanted to push the first film's ideas further for humorous effect. Zemeckis said he was somewhat concerned about portraying the future because of the risk of making wildly inaccurate predictions. According to Gale, they tried to make the future a nice place, "where what's wrong is due to who lives in the future as opposed to the technology" in contrast to the pessimistic, [[Orwellian]] future seen in most science fiction.<ref name=making /> Gale has stated that the characterization of the 1985A Biff took inspiration from [[Donald Trump]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lee |first=Benjamin |date=2015-10-23 |title=Back to the Future writer: bad guy Biff was based on Donald Trump |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oct/23/back-to-the-future-writer-bad-guy-biff-was-based-on-donald-trump |access-date=2024-03-03 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=December 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201206082502/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oct/23/back-to-the-future-writer-bad-guy-biff-was-based-on-donald-trump |url-status=live }}</ref> To keep production costs low and take advantage of an extended break Fox had from ''[[Family Ties]]'' (which was ending its run when filming began), it was shot [[Back to back film production|back-to-back]] with sequel ''[[Back to the Future Part III|Part III]]''.<ref name=back>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-02-04-ca-1660-story.html|title=Back-to-Back Sequels for 'Back to Future'|date=February 4, 1989|first=Steve|last=Weinstein|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130309003854/http://articles.latimes.com/1989-02-04/entertainment/ca-1660_1_back-to-back-sequels|archive-date=March 9, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Production==
Two years were needed to finish building the sets and writing the scripts before shooting could begin. During filming the creation of the appearance of the aged characters was a well-guarded secret, involving state-of-the-art make-up techniques. Fox described the process as very time-consuming, saying that "it took over four hours, although it could be worse".<ref name="making" /> [[Principal photography]] began on February 20, 1989.<ref name=back /> Fox was pulling double duty, acting in the last season of ''Family Ties'' as filming began on the sequel. For a three-week period near the end of the filming, the crew split and, while most remained dedicated to shooting ''Part III'', a few, including Gale, focused on finishing its predecessor. Zemeckis himself slept only a few hours per day, supervising both films, having to fly between [[Burbank, California|Burbank]], where it was being finished and other locations in [[California]] for ''Part III''.<ref>{{cite video | people = [[Robert Zemeckis]], [[Bob Gale]] | chapter = Back to the Future Feature: Making the Trilogy Part 3 | title = ''Back to the Future Part III'' DVD | publisher = [[Universal Pictures]] | location = Los Angeles | year = 2005}}</ref>

The film was considered one of the most ground-breaking projects for [[Industrial Light & Magic]]. It was one of the effects house's first forays into [[digital compositing]], as well as the VistaGlide [[motion control photography|motion control]] camera system, which enabled them to shoot one of its most complex sequences, in which Fox played three separate characters (Marty Sr., Marty Jr., and Marlene), all of whom interacted with each other. Although such scenes were not new, the VistaGlide allowed, for the first time, a completely dynamic scene in which camera movement could finally be incorporated. The technique was also used in scenes where Fox, Thomas F. Wilson, Christopher Lloyd, and Elisabeth Shue's characters encounter and interact with their counterparts.<ref name=making /> It also includes a brief moment of [[computer-generated imagery]] in a [[hologram|holographic]] shark used to promote a fictional ''[[Jaws (franchise)|Jaws]] 19'', which wound up unaltered from the first test done by ILM's digital department because effects supervisor [[Ken Ralston]] "liked the fact that it was all messed up."<ref name=up>{{cite web|url=http://uproxx.com/movies/2014/11/back-to-the-future-ii-predictions-art-director/2/|title='Back to the Future II's Art Director Tells Us How They Developed The Film's Somewhat Misguided Predictions|first=Chloe|last=Schildhause|publisher=Uproxx|date=November 25, 2014|access-date=January 6, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150106162508/http://uproxx.com/movies/2014/11/back-to-the-future-ii-predictions-art-director/2/|archive-date=January 6, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

Animation supervisor [[Wes Takahashi]], who then was the head of ILM's animation department, worked heavily on the film's time travel sequences, as he had done in the original film and in ''Part III''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Failes|first=Ian|date=October 21, 2015|title=The future is today: how ILM made time travel possible|url=https://www.fxguide.com/featured/the-future-is-today-how-ilm-made-time-travel-possible-frame-by-frame/|website=FXGuide|access-date=June 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701211801/https://www.fxguide.com/featured/the-future-is-today-how-ilm-made-time-travel-possible-frame-by-frame/|archive-date=July 1, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://itu.edu/digital-arts/faculty/|title=Digital Arts Faculty|publisher=International Technological University|access-date=June 17, 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160812215132/http://itu.edu/digital-arts/faculty/|archive-date=August 12, 2016}}</ref> As ''Part II'' neared release, sufficient footage of ''Part III'' had been shot to allow a trailer to be assembled. It was added to the conclusion of ''Part II'' before the closing credits, as a reassurance to moviegoers that there was more to follow.<ref name="timeflies">''Tales from the Future: Time Flies'' documentary, ''Back to the Future Trilogy'' Blu-ray, 2010</ref>

===Replacement of Crispin Glover and lawsuit===
[[File:Crispin Glover 2012 Shankbone.JPG|thumb|upright|left|150px|alt= Portrait of Jeffrey Weissman |[[Crispin Glover]] (pictured in 2012) did not reprise his role as George McFly in ''Back to the Future Part II'', and was replaced by [[Jeffrey Weissman]].]]
[[Crispin Glover]] was asked to reprise the role of [[George McFly]]. He expressed interest, but could not come to an agreement with the producers regarding his salary. He stated in a 1992 interview on ''[[The Howard Stern Show]]'' that the producers' highest offer was $125,000, less than half of what the other returning cast members were offered. Gale has since asserted that Glover's demands were excessive for an actor of his professional stature at that time.<ref name="timeflies" /> In an interview on the ''[[Opie and Anthony]]'' show in 2013, Glover stated that his primary reason for not doing ''Part II'' was a philosophical disagreement on the film's message; Glover felt the story rewarded the characters with financial gain, such as Marty's truck, rather than love.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcG61w474zY |title="Back to the Future" Conspiracies, Alternate Endings, & Lawsuits with Crispin Glover |via=[[YouTube]] |date=June 6, 2013 |access-date=June 7, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016213140/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcG61w474zY |archive-date=October 16, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Rather than write George out of the film, Zemeckis used previously filmed footage of Glover from the first film as well as new footage of actor [[Jeffrey Weissman]], who wore [[Prosthesis|prosthetics]] including a false chin, nose, and cheekbones to resemble Glover. Various techniques were used to obfuscate the Weissman footage, such as placing him in the background rather than the foreground, having him wear sunglasses, and hanging him upside down. Glover would also learn from Weissman that the molds created from his face to make the aging prosthetics for 1985 George McFly in the first film were reused to make the prosthetics for Weissman's portrayal. Unhappy with this, Glover filed a lawsuit against the producers of the film on the grounds that they neither owned his likeness nor had permission to use it. As a result of the suit, there are now clauses in the [[Screen Actors Guild]] collective bargaining agreements stating that producers and actors are not allowed to use such methods to reproduce the likeness of other actors.<ref>{{cite interview |last=Glover |first=Crispin |subject-link=Crispin Glover |interviewer=[[Simon Mayo]], [[Mark Kermode]] |title=Crispin Glover on Back to the Future 2 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q7wGsVYydo |via=YouTube |work=Kermode & Mayo |publisher=[[BBC Radio 5 Live]] |location=London |date=February 2011 |access-date=April 11, 2011 |archive-date=October 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016212931/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Q7wGsVYydo |url-status=live}}<!-- This clip was uploaded by the official account of the BBC Radio 5Live program.--></ref> Glover's legal action, while resolved outside of the courts, has been considered as a key case in [[personality rights]] for actors with increasing use of improved special effects and digital techniques, in which actors may have agreed to appear in one part of a production but have their likenesses be used in another without their agreement.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/back-future-ii-a-legal-833705 | title = 'Back to the Future II" From a Legal Perspective: Unintentionally Visionary | first = Eriq | last = Gardner | date = October 21, 2015 | access-date = May 12, 2020 | work = [[The Hollywood Reporter]] | archive-date = May 10, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200510224933/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/back-future-ii-a-legal-833705 | url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.theverge.com/2019/10/22/20927032/cgi-digital-actor-replacement-cinema-gemini-man-the-congress-rogue-one-legality | title = Cinema's Digital Impostors Are Coming | first = Charles | last = Bramesco | date = October 22, 2019 | access-date = May 12, 2020 | work = [[The Verge]] | archive-date = April 20, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200420013246/https://www.theverge.com/2019/10/22/20927032/cgi-digital-actor-replacement-cinema-gemini-man-the-congress-rogue-one-legality | url-status = live}}</ref>

===Replacement of Claudia Wells===
[[File:Jennifer1&2.png|thumb|right|The closing scene of ''Back to the Future'' with Claudia Wells (above) was reshot for the opening of ''Part II'' with Elisabeth Shue (below).]]
[[Claudia Wells]] planned to reprise her role as Marty's girlfriend Jennifer Parker, but when filming coincided with a family cancer crisis, she chose to care for her mother's health.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/back-to-the-futures-claud_b_7742682|title=Back to the Future's Claudia Wells: Shining Brighter Than Ever Before|date=July 7, 2015|website=HuffPost|access-date=November 1, 2022|archive-date=November 1, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221101085154/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/back-to-the-futures-claud_b_7742682|url-status=live}}</ref> After the producers cast [[Elisabeth Shue]] as a replacement, they re-shot the closing scenes of the first film for the beginning of ''Part II'', in a nearly [[shot-for-shot]] match with the original.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cedmagic.com/featured/back-to-the-future/back-future.html |title=Back to the Future CED Web Page |publisher=Cedmagic.com |access-date=August 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110912012033/http://www.cedmagic.com/featured/back-to-the-future/back-future.html |archive-date=September 12, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htyYy9ML5rk |title=Back to the Future – Comparison |via=[[YouTube]] |date=April 8, 2009 |access-date=August 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016213859/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htyYy9ML5rk |archive-date=October 16, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Wells returned to acting with a starring role in the 2008 independent film ''Still Waters Burn''. She is one of the few cast members not to make an appearance within the bonus material on the ''Back to the Future Trilogy'' DVD set released in 2002. However, she is interviewed for the ''Tales from the Future'' documentaries in the trilogy's 25th anniversary issue on [[Blu-ray Disc]] in 2010. Wells would also later reprise her role from the first film, 26 years after her last appearance in the series, providing the voice of Jennifer for ''[[Back to the Future: The Game]]'' by [[Telltale Games]] in 2011.<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/12afna/back-to-the-future-episode-1--it-s-about-time-exclusive-behind-the-scenes-part-iv--how-we-got-jennifer|title = Exclusive Behind the Scenes Part IV: How We Got Jennifer|date = March 23, 2011|access-date = October 14, 2015|website = gametrailers.com|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151105012737/http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/12afna/back-to-the-future-episode-1--it-s-about-time-exclusive-behind-the-scenes-part-iv--how-we-got-jennifer|archive-date = November 5, 2015|url-status = live}}</ref>

===Hoverboard hoax===
Zemeckis said jokingly on the film's behind-the-scenes featurette that the [[hoverboard]]s (flying skateboards) used in it were real, yet not released to the public, due to parental complaints regarding safety.<ref name=featurette>{{cite video | people = [[Robert Zemeckis]], [[Bob Gale]] | title = Back to the Future Part II: Featurette | medium = DVD | publisher = [[Universal Pictures]] | location = Los Angeles | year = 2005}}</ref> Footage of "real hoverboards" was also featured in the extras of a DVD release of the trilogy. A number of people thought Zemeckis was telling the truth and requested them at toy stores. In an interview, Wilson said one of the most frequent questions he was asked was if they are real.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwY5o2fsG7Y |title=Thomas F. Wilson's "Biff's Question Song" |via=[[YouTube]] |date=September 27, 2006 |access-date=October 2, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110920143228/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwY5o2fsG7Y |archive-date=September 20, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Depiction of the future==
Although the filmmakers researched contemporary predictions by scientists on what might occur by 2015, Zemeckis has said that the film was not meant to be a serious attempt at predicting the future. In 2010, he commented: "For me, filming the future scenes of the movie were the least enjoyable of making the whole trilogy, because I don't really like films that try and predict the future. The only ones I've actually enjoyed were the ones done by [[Stanley Kubrick]], and not even he predicted the [[Personal computer|PC]] when he made ''[[A Clockwork Orange (film)|A Clockwork Orange]]''. So, rather than trying to make a scientifically sound prediction that we were probably going to get wrong anyway, we figured, let's just make it funny".<ref>Q&A Commentary with Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, ''Back to the Future Part II'' Blu-Ray, 2010</ref> Similarly, Gale said: "We knew we weren't going to have [[flying car]]s by the year 2015, but God we had to have those in our movie".<ref>Tales from the Future: Time Flies, ''Back to the Future Part II'' Blu-Ray, 2010</ref>

However, the film did correctly predict a number of technological and sociological changes that occurred by 2015, including: the rise of [[Omnipresence|ubiquitous]] cameras; use of unmanned flying [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|drones]] for [[news]]gathering; widescreen [[Flat-panel display|flat-panel]] television sets mounted on walls with multiple channel viewing; [[Home automation|smart home technology]]; [[Videotelephony|video chat]] systems; [[Kinect|hands-free video games]]; talking animated [[billboard]]s; [[wearable technology]]; [[tablet computer]]s with fingerprint scanners and [[head-mounted display]]s.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/20/entertainment/back-to-the-future-ii-right-wrong-feat/ | title = What did 'Back to the Future II' get right? | publisher = [[CNN]] | first = Todd | last = Leopald | date = October 20, 2015 | access-date = October 20, 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151022235346/http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/20/entertainment/back-to-the-future-ii-right-wrong-feat | archive-date = October 22, 2015 | url-status = live}}</ref><ref name="time predict">{{cite magazine |last=Poppick |first=Susie |date=October 20, 2015 |title=10 Back to the Future Predictions That Came True |url=https://money.com/back-to-the-future-day-predictions-accuracy/ |url-status=live |magazine=Money.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211221134252/https://money.com/back-to-the-future-day-predictions-accuracy/ |archive-date=December 21, 2021 |access-date=October 20, 2015}}</ref> Payment on personal portable devices is also depicted. Although payment by thumbprint was not widely used in 2015, [[biometrics|fingerprint scanning]] was in use as security at places such as airports and schools, and electronic payment with fingerprint scanning as a security feature deployed for [[Apple Pay]].<ref name="time predict" />

Other aspects of the depiction of the future would not come to pass by 2015, but efforts were made to replicate those technology advances.

{{multiple image
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| image1            = Back to the Future Taxi based on 1972 Citroën DS.jpg
| caption1          = The Luxor Taxi based on the 1972 [[Citroën DS]]
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}}

The film shows Marty putting on [[Nike, Inc.|Nike]] "[[Nike Mag|Air Mag]]" tennis shoes with automatic shoelaces. Nike released a version of its Hyperdunk Supreme shoes, which appear similar to Marty's, in July 2008. Fans dubbed them the ''Air McFly''.<ref>{{cite web|url = https://gizmodo.com/5020072/nike-finally-releasing-back-to-the-future-part-ii-mcfly-sneakers-sort-of|title = Nike Finally Releasing Back to the Future Part II McFly Sneakers, Sort Of|date = June 26, 2008|access-date = October 14, 2015|website = Gizmodo|last = Frucci|first = Adam|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151010031919/http://gizmodo.com/5020072/nike-finally-releasing-back-to-the-future-part-ii-mcfly-sneakers-sort-of|archive-date = October 10, 2015|url-status = live}}</ref> In April 2009, Nike filed the patent for self-lacing shoes, and its design bears a resemblance to those worn by Marty in the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/WO2009134858|title=US2009042072 AUTOMATIC LACING SYSTEM|work=wipo.int|access-date=May 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502004223/http://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/WO2009134858|archive-date=May 2, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2010, a fan named Blake Bevin created shoes that tie themselves.<ref>{{cite web|first=Terrence|last=O'Brien|url=http://www.switched.com/2010/07/06/back-to-the-future-inspired-shoes-really-tie-themselves/|title='Back to the Future' Inspired Shoes Really Tie Themselves|publisher=Switched.com|date=July 6, 2010|access-date=November 28, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001142734/http://www.switched.com/2010/07/06/back-to-the-future-inspired-shoes-really-tie-themselves/|archive-date=October 1, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> Though Nike had made a very limited quantity of Air Mags in the same style as the movie, the company stated in September 2011 that its consumer-line [[Nike Mag|MAG line of shoes]] would not feature the self-lacing feature shown in it.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.avclub.com/nike-finally-making-back-to-the-future-iis-self-lacing-1798227343 | title = Nike finally making Back to the Future II's self-lacing shoes for real | first = Sean | last = O'Neal | newspaper = [[The A.V. Club]] | date = September 8, 2011 | access-date = September 8, 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110908185647/http://www.avclub.com/articles/nike-finally-making-back-to-the-future-iis-selflac,61480/ | archive-date = September 8, 2011 | url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://gizmodo.com/5838503/the-nike-air-mag-aka-the-back-to-the-future-shoes-are-real-and-theyre-glorious/ | title = The Nike Air Mag—AKA the Back to the Future Shoes—Are Real, and They're Glorious | first = Casey | last = Chan | website = [[Gizmodo]] | date = September 8, 2011 | access-date = September 8, 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110910205956/http://gizmodo.com/5838503/the-nike-air-mag-aka-the-back-to-the-future-shoes-are-real-and-theyre-glorious | archive-date = September 10, 2011 | url-status = live}}</ref> [[Tinker Hatfield]], one of the shoe's designers, indicated in 2014 that it would introduce shoes with power-lacing technology the following year, 2015.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://nypost.com/2014/02/17/nike-is-actually-making-marty-mcflys-self-lacing-shoes/ | title = Nike is actually making Marty McFly's self-lacing shoes | first = James | last = Billington | work = [[New York Post]] | date = February 17, 2014 | access-date = February 17, 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140218125006/http://nypost.com/2014/02/17/nike-is-actually-making-marty-mcflys-self-lacing-shoes/ | archive-date = February 18, 2014 | url-status = live}}</ref> In March 2016, Nike unveiled the [[HyperAdapt 1.0]] shoe, a consumer-market model of the Air Mag which features the same self-lacing technology used for the commemorative Air Mags; these were put on sale in limited quantities in late 2016.<ref>{{Cite web | url = https://www.theverge.com/2016/3/16/11248264/nike-hyperadapt-self-lacing-sneakers-announced-back-to-the-future-air-mag | title = Nike will sell actual self-lacing sneakers, just like Back to the Future | first = Sean | last = O'Kane | date = March 16, 2016 | access-date = March 16, 2016 | work = [[The Verge]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160316201152/http://www.theverge.com/2016/3/16/11248264/nike-hyperadapt-self-lacing-sneakers-announced-back-to-the-future-air-mag | archive-date = March 16, 2016 | url-status = live}}</ref>

The producers created a futuristic flying car to depict a typical taxi cab in the future world of 2015. This taxi was based on the [[Citroën DS]].<ref>{{Cite web| url =https://synthiam.com/Community/Robots/Luxor-Cab-as-seen-in-Back-to-the-Future-2-Animatronic-18587| title =Luxor Cab as seen in Back to the Future 2 – Animatronic| date =September 10, 2019| accessdate =September 3, 2021| archive-date =September 4, 2021| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20210904070406/https://synthiam.com/Community/Robots/Luxor-Cab-as-seen-in-Back-to-the-Future-2-Animatronic-18587| url-status =live}}</ref>

The concept of the [[hoverboard]]—a skateboard that can float off the ground—has been explored by various groups since the release of the film. Attempts similar to hoverboats, which blast air at the ground, have been demonstrated,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/aviation/why-dont-we-have-hoverboards-15363707 | title = Why Don't We Have Hoverboards? | first = Kevin | last = Hanson | date = April 18, 2013 | access-date = March 5, 2014 | work = [[Popular Mechanics]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140308071151/http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/aviation/why-dont-we-have-hoverboards-15363707 | archive-date = March 8, 2014 | url-status = live}}</ref> with a 2021 record distance of {{convert|275|meters}}.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.cbc.ca/m/news/technology/hoverboard-duru-1.3270569| title=Canadian inventor tests new prototype of record-setting hoverboard| date=October 14, 2015| publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation| access-date=October 14, 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017230310/http://www.cbc.ca/m/news/technology/hoverboard-duru-1.3270569| archive-date=October 17, 2015| url-status=live}}</ref> A different type is the MagBoard, developed by researchers at the [[Paris Diderot University]]. It uses a large [[superconductor]] plate on the bottom cooled with liquid nitrogen as to achieve the [[Meissner effect]] and allow it to float over a special track; it was shown capable of carrying the weight of a human in its practical demonstration. However, the requirement to run the superconductor at higher, more ambient temperatures prevents this from becoming practical.<ref>{{Cite web | url = http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2012/11/where_s_my_hoverboard_sorry_you_re_probably_never_getting_one.single.html | title = Let's Face It, We're Never Getting Our Hoverboards | work = [[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] | date = November 16, 2012 | access-date = March 5, 2014 | first = Will | last = Oremus | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140305092218/http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2012/11/where_s_my_hoverboard_sorry_you_re_probably_never_getting_one.single.html | archive-date = March 5, 2014 | url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine | url = https://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2011-10/27/hoverboard | title = Video: French researchers build hoverboard | first = Olivia | last = Solon | date = October 27, 2011 | access-date = March 5, 2014 | magazine = [[Wired UK]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140306034153/http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2011-10/27/hoverboard | archive-date = March 6, 2014 | url-status = live}}</ref> In March 2014, a company named HUVr Tech purportedly demonstrated a working hoverboard along with several celebrities including Lloyd, though this shortly was revealed as a hoax created by the website [[Funny or Die]].<ref>{{Cite magazine | url = http://techland.time.com/2014/03/05/fake-huvr-hoverboard-video-was-our-fake-says-funny-or-die/ | title = Funny Or Die: Fake HUVr Hoverboard Video Was Our Fake | first = Doug | last = Aamoth | date = March 5, 2014 | access-date = March 5, 2014 | magazine = [[Time (magazine)|Time]] | archive-date = May 6, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210506213644/https://time.com/13186/fake-huvr-hoverboard-video-was-our-fake-says-funny-or-die/ | url-status = dead}}</ref> [[Self-balancing scooter|Self-balancing "hoverboards"]] became popular in 2015 even though they do not hover above the ground.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://public.oed.com/the-oed-today/recent-updates-to-the-oed/september-2015-update/new-words-notes-september-2015/|title=New words notes September 2015|last=Dent|first=Jonathan |work=[[Oxford English Dictionary]]|date=September 2015|access-date=June 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222094821/http://public.oed.com/the-oed-today/recent-updates-to-the-oed/september-2015-update/new-words-notes-september-2015/|archive-date=December 22, 2015}}</ref>

In the 2015 scene, the film imagines the [[Chicago Cubs]] winning the 2015 [[World Series]] against the fictional [[Miami]]-based Gators, referring to the [[Curse of the Billy Goat|Cubs' longstanding failure]] to win a championship. In [[2015 Major League Baseball season|the actual 2015 season]], the Cubs qualified for the [[Major League Baseball postseason|postseason]], their first postseason appearance since [[2008 National League Division Series|2008]],<ref>{{cite web|last1=Sullivan|first1=Paul|title=Cubs' premature surge to playoffs defies all expectations, reasoning|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-clinch-playoffs-sullivan-spt-0927-20150925-column.html|work=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=September 26, 2015|access-date=September 27, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927194425/http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-cubs-clinch-playoffs-sullivan-spt-0927-20150925-column.html|archive-date=September 27, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> but lost the [[2015 National League Championship Series|National League Championship Series]] (not the World Series) to the [[New York Mets]] on October 21, which coincidentally was the same day as "''Back to the Future'' Day", the day Marty McFly arrived in 2015 in the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gd2.mlb.com/content/game/mlb/year_2015/month_10/day_21/gid_2015_10_21_nynmlb_chnmlb_1/boxscore_col.html|title=Boxscore: New York vs. Chicago, Game 4|publisher=[[MLB]]|date=October 21, 2015|access-date=October 22, 2015|archive-date=July 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190720021130/http://gd2.mlb.com/content/game/mlb/year_2015/month_10/day_21/gid_2015_10_21_nynmlb_chnmlb_1/boxscore_col.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Despite losing, one year later the Cubs ''did'' win the [[2016 World Series]] against the [[Cleveland Indians]];<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/gameday/cubs-vs-indians/2016/11/02/487637?partnerId=LR_box#game_tab=box,game=487637,game_state=final|title=Cubs vs. Indians Box Score|publisher=[[MLB]]|date=November 2, 2016|access-date=June 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190114175853/https://www.mlb.com/gameday/cubs-vs-indians/2016/11/02/487637?partnerId=LR_box#game_tab=box,game=487637,game_state=final|archive-date=January 14, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> in congratulations to the Cubs, the official [[Twitter]] feed for the ''Back to the Future'' franchise jokingly tweeted out that Marty & Doc's time-traveling caused "a rift in the space-time continuum" that led to the [[1994–95 Major League Baseball strike|1994 strike]] (and subsequent cancellation of the [[1994 World Series]]), thus delaying the accurate prediction by a year.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/back-to-the-future-chicago-cubs_n_581b73c9e4b0b8e11a1358c9|title='Back to the Future Part II' Was Only A Year Off in Predicting The Cubs' World Series Win|last=Brucculieri|first=Julia|work=[[Huffington Post]]|date=November 3, 2016|access-date=June 9, 2019|archive-date=May 6, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506213644/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/back-to-the-future-chicago-cubs_n_581b73c9e4b0b8e11a1358c9|url-status=live}}</ref> In the real [[2015 World Series]], the [[Kansas City Royals]] defeated the Mets to win their first World Series championship since 1985, the year which Marty and Doc time traveled in the film. As for the fictional Miami team, when the film was made, [[Florida]] did not have a [[Major League Baseball]] team,<ref>{{cite news|last1=Oz|first1=Mike|title=Reminder: The Cubs won the 2015 World Series in 'Back to the Future 2'|url=https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-big-league-stew/reminder--the-cubs-won-the-2015-world-series-in--back-to-the-future-2-085935047.html|work=[[Yahoo Sports]]|access-date=August 5, 2015|date=December 10, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905065130/http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-big-league-stew/reminder--the-cubs-won-the-2015-world-series-in--back-to-the-future-2-085935047.html|archive-date=September 5, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> but has since gained two: the Florida Marlins (now the [[Miami Marlins]]) in 1993 and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (now the [[Tampa Bay Rays]]) in 1998. While both teams have each made two appearances in the World Series (the Marlins winning in [[1997 World Series|1997]] and [[2003 World Series|2003]], and the Rays losing in [[2008 World Series|2008]] and [[2020 World Series|2020]]), neither qualified for the postseason in 2015. Another sport mentioned in the film, [[SlamBall]], would indeed become a real sport in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.11points.com/Movies/11_Predictions_That_Back_to_the_Future_Part_II_Got_Right|title=11 Predictions That Back to the Future Part II Got Right|date=8 April 2009|website=11points.com|url-status=live|archive-url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20091208064012/http://www.11points.com/Movies/11_Predictions_That_Back_to_the_Future_Part_II_Got_Right|archive-date=8 December 2009}}</ref>

==Release and reception==
===Box office===
The film was released to theaters in North America on Wednesday, November 22, 1989, the day before [[Thanksgiving Day|Thanksgiving]]. It grossed a total of $27.8 million over Friday to Sunday, and $43 million across the five-day holiday opening, breaking the previous Thanksgiving record set by ''[[Rocky IV]]'' in 1985.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-tennessean-future-ii-sets-thanksgi/134631986/ |title='Future II' sets Thanksgiving weekend record |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231104223538/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-tennessean-future-ii-sets-thanksgi/134631986/ |date=November 29, 1989 |access-date=November 4, 2023 |archive-date=November 4, 2023 |page=53 |publisher=[[The Tennessean]] |url-status=live}} {{Open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|page=6|date=November 29, 1989|title='Future II' blitzes b.o. with $43-mil; Harlem shaggy, 'Talking' quieter}}</ref> On the following weekend, it had a drop of 56 percent, earning $12.1 million, but remained at number 1.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-12-04-ca-296-story.html|title=SHORT TAKES : 'Back to Future' Falls Off; Still Leads Box Office Pack|date=December 4, 1989|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130328092921/http://articles.latimes.com/1989-12-04/entertainment/ca-296_1_box-office|archive-date=March 28, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> Its total gross was $118.5 million in the United States and $213 million overseas, for a total of $332 million worldwide, ranking as 1989's sixth-most successful film domestically and the third-most worldwide—behind ''[[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade]]'' and ''[[Batman (1989 film)|Batman]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=backtothefuture2.htm|title=Back to the Future Part II (1989)|work=[[Box Office Mojo]]|publisher=[[Internet Movie Database]]|access-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130134734/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=backtothefuture2.htm|archive-date=January 30, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> However this was still short of the first film's gross. ''Part III'', which Universal released only six months later, experienced a similar drop. In Japan, it had a record opening, grossing $7.5 million in six days from 153 screens.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|page=33|date=December 20, 1989|last=Groves|first=Don|title=Top pix score well against adverse conditions}}</ref>

===Critical response===
On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of {{RT data|score}} based on {{RT data|count}} reviews, with an average rating of {{RT data|average}}. The website's critics consensus reads: "''Back to the Future II'' is far more uneven than its predecessor, but its madcap highs outweigh the occasionally cluttered machinations of an overstuffed plot".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/back_to_the_future_2|title=Back to the Future Part II|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|publisher=[[Fandango Media|Fandango]]|access-date={{RT data|access date}}|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430125102/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/back_to_the_future_2|archive-date=April 30, 2019|url-status=live}}{{RT data|edit}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a weighted average score of 57 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.metacritic.com/movie/back-to-the-future-part-ii|title = Back to the Future Part II|access-date = November 6, 2021|website = [[Metacritic]]|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151025215040/http://www.metacritic.com/movie/back-to-the-future-part-ii|archive-date = October 25, 2015|url-status = live}}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cinemascore.com|title=Find CinemaScore|format=Type "Back to the Future" in the search box|publisher=[[CinemaScore]]|access-date=February 17, 2020|archive-date=January 2, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102130540/https://www.cinemascore.com/|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' gave the film three out of four stars. Ebert criticized it for lacking the "genuine power of the original" but praised it for its slapstick humor and the hoverboard in its chase sequence.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19891122/REVIEWS/911220301|last=Ebert|first=Roger|work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|title=Back to the Future: Part II|date=November 22, 1989|access-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102061414/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F19891122%2FREVIEWS%2F911220301|archive-date=November 2, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Janet Maslin]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote that the film is "ready for bigger and better things" and later said that it "manages to be giddily and merrily mind-boggling, rather than confusing".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=950DE3D8153EF931A15752C1A96F948260|last=Maslin|first=Janet|work=[[The New York Times]]|title=Back to the Future II|date=November 22, 1989|access-date=March 11, 2012|archive-date=May 6, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506213712/https://www.nytimes.com/1989/11/22/movies/review-film-a-sequel-of-sequence-and-consequence.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Tom Tunney of ''[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]'' magazine wrote that the film was well-directed, "high-energy escapism", and called it "solidly entertaining", though noting it as being inferior to the other two films in the franchise.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Tunney |first=Tom |date=January 1, 2000 |title=Back to the Future: Part II Review |url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/back-future-part-ii/review/ |magazine=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] |access-date=June 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160719023407/http://www.empireonline.com/movies/back-future-part-ii/review/ |archive-date=July 19, 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Jonathan Rosenbaum]] of the ''[[Chicago Reader]]'' gave the film a negative review, criticizing Zemeckis and Gale for turning the characters into "strident geeks" and for making the frenetic action formulaic. He believed that it contained "rampant misogyny", because the character of Jennifer Parker "is knocked unconscious early on so she won't interfere with the little-boy games". He cited, as well, Michael J. Fox dressing in [[drag (clothing)|drag]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/back-to-the-future-part-ii/Film?oid=1056071|last=Rosenbaum|first=Jonathan|work=[[Chicago Reader]]|title=Back to the Future Part II|date=November 22, 1989|access-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025015923/http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/back-to-the-future-part-ii/Film?oid=1056071|archive-date=October 25, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' said, "[Director Robert] Zemeckis' fascination with having characters interact at different ages of their lives hurts it visually, and strains credibility past the breaking point, by forcing him to rely on some very cheesy makeup designs".<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://variety.com/1988/film/reviews/back-to-the-future-part-ii-1200428065/|journal=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|title=Back to the Future Part II|date=November 22, 1989|access-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923010220/https://variety.com/1988/film/reviews/back-to-the-future-part-ii-1200428065/|archive-date=September 23, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2018, Bob Gale, who co-wrote the movie with Robert Zemeckis, said the movie received a mixed reception because of the dark aspect of the story: "They [the audiences] were absolutely surprised by it. The whole 1985 stuff... we went places the audience was not ready to go. That is some of my favorite stuff in the whole trilogy".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://amblinroad.com/2018/07/16/interview-back-to-the-future-co-creator-bob-gale/|title=Interview: Back to the Future Co-Creator, Bob Gale|date=July 16, 2018|access-date=February 29, 2020|archive-date=February 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200229230137/http://amblinroad.com/2018/07/16/interview-back-to-the-future-co-creator-bob-gale/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Accolades===
The film won the [[Saturn Award for Best Special Effects]] (for [[Ken Ralston]], the special effects supervisor), the [[BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects]] (Ken Ralston, [[Michael Lantieri]], [[John Bell (special effects artist)|John Bell]] and [[Steve Gawley]]),<ref>{{cite web|title=Film: Achievement in Special Visual Effects in 1990|publisher=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]]|url=http://awards.bafta.org/award/1990/film/achievement-in-special-visual-effects|access-date=October 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315043632/http://awards.bafta.org/award/1990/film/achievement-in-special-visual-effects|archive-date=March 15, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> an Internet-voted 2003 AOL Movies DVD Premiere Award for the trilogy DVDs, a [[Goldene Leinwand|Golden Screen Award]], a Young Artist Award, and the Blimp Awards for Favorite Movie Actor (Michael J. Fox), and Favorite Movie Actress (Lea Thompson) at the [[1990 Kids' Choice Awards]]. It was nominated in 1990 for an [[Academy Award for Best Visual Effects]] (John Bell, Steve Gawley, Michael Lantieri and Ken Ralston), but lost to ''[[The Abyss]]''.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gross |first=Jane |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/democrat-and-chronicle-oscar-show-lets-v/125041038/ |title=Oscar show lets viewers see movie stars as real people |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230520231706/https://www.newspapers.com/article/democrat-and-chronicle-oscar-show-lets-v/125041038/ |date=March 27, 1990 |access-date=May 20, 2023 |archive-date=May 20, 2023 |page=27 |work=The New York Times |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |url-status=live}} {{Open access}}</ref><ref name="Oscars1990">{{Cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1990|title=The 62nd Academy Awards (1990) Nominees and Winners|access-date=April 9, 2014|work=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]]|publisher=AMPAS|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402002952/http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1990|archive-date=April 2, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Home media===
The film was released on VHS and [[LaserDisc]] on May 22, 1990, three days before the theatrical release of ''Part III''. It was due to be the first release under the [[MCA/Universal Home Video]] banner.<ref>{{cite news|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=March 21, 1990|title=Vid goes back to 'Future II' for May release of 'Future III'|page=4}}</ref> On December 17, 2002, Universal released it on DVD in a boxed trilogy set, although widescreen framing problems led to a product recall.<ref name="screencaptures">{{cite web | url = https://www.angelfire.com/film/bttf2/ | title = Description of DVD framing fiasco | work = Various |access-date=January 10, 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070211233029/http://www.angelfire.com/film/bttf2| archive-date= February 11, 2007 | url-status= live}}</ref> The trilogy was released on Blu-ray Disc in October 2010.

Universal re-released the trilogy alongside new features on DVD and Blu-ray on October 20, 2015, coinciding with ''Back to the Future Day'' the following day. The new set included a featurette called "Doc Brown Saves the World", where Lloyd, reprising his role as Doc Brown, explains the reasons for the differences between the future of 2015 as depicted in ''Back to the Future Part II'' and in real life.<ref>{{Cite web | url = https://www.slashfilm.com/back-to-the-future-day/ | title = Bob Gale's Guide to 'Back to the Future' Celebration Events Coming in October | first = Ethan | last = Anderton | date = September 16, 2015 | access-date = October 14, 2015 | work = [[Slash Film]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151011062450/http://www.slashfilm.com/back-to-the-future-day | archive-date = October 11, 2015 | url-status = live}}</ref> A new remaster as part of ''Back to the Future: The Ultimate Trilogy'' on Blu-ray and [[Ultra HD Blu-ray]] was released on October 20, 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Back to the Future™ Trilogy – One of the Biggest Motion Picture Trilogies Comes to 4K Ultra HD for the First Time Ever|url=https://www.backtothefuture.com/news/2020/7/27/back-to-the-future-the-ultimate-trilogy-heads-to-4k-ultra-hd-blu-ray-and-dvd|access-date=August 3, 2020|website=Back to the Future™ Trilogy|date=July 27, 2020 |language=en-US|archive-date=August 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803140315/https://www.backtothefuture.com/news/2020/7/27/back-to-the-future-the-ultimate-trilogy-heads-to-4k-ultra-hd-blu-ray-and-dvd|url-status=live}}</ref>

In May 2020, the trilogy was released for streaming on [[Netflix]]. A small edit was noticed to ''Part II'' during the scene featuring the fictional [[pornographic magazine|soft porn magazine]] called ''Oh La La!'' in which the shot showing the reveal of the magazine cover is cut short, omitting sight of the magazine itself. Gale stated that neither he nor Zemeckis were aware of this change, and believed it originated from a foreign print of the film. Shortly afterwards, Universal provided Netflix with the unedited, theatrical version of the film,<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/back-future-writer-says-dont-blame-netflix-censored-version-sequel-1295639 | title = 'Back to the Future' Writer Asks Universal to Destroy Censored Version of Sequel | first = Ryan | last = Parker | date = May 22, 2020 | access-date = May 22, 2020 | work = [[The Hollywood Reporter]] | archive-date = May 23, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200523100603/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/back-future-writer-says-dont-blame-netflix-censored-version-sequel-1295639 | url-status = live}}</ref> replacing the censored cut on the streaming platform.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Netflix Corrected Back to the Future Error, Writer Says|url=https://bleedingcool.com/movies/netflix-corrected-back-to-the-future-error-writer-says/|last=Chang|first=Tom|date=May 23, 2020|website=[[Bleeding Cool]]|access-date=May 25, 2020|archive-date=June 2, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200602205038/https://bleedingcool.com/movies/netflix-corrected-back-to-the-future-error-writer-says/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Music==
{{Main|Back to the Future Part II (soundtrack)|l1=''Back to the Future Part II'' (soundtrack)}}
The soundtrack was released by [[MCA Records]] on November 22, 1989. [[AllMusic]] rated it four-and-a-half stars out of five.<ref>[https://www.allmusic.com/album/back-to-the-future-pt-2-original-motion-picture-soundtrack-mw0000654504 "Original Motion Picture Soundtrack"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170612180547/http://www.allmusic.com/album/back-to-the-future-pt-2-original-motion-picture-soundtrack-mw0000654504 |date=June 12, 2017}}. ''[[allmusic.com]]''</ref> Unlike the previous soundtrack, it contains only a musical score composed and conducted by [[Alan Silvestri]] and performed by the [[Hollywood Studio Symphony]]. None of the vocal songs featured throughout the film are included. On October 12, 2015, [[Intrada Records]] released the complete score of ''Back to the Future Part II'' in a 2-disc set including early scoring sessions and alternative takes.

==See also==
{{Portal|Film|United States|1980s|Science fiction}}
* [[List of 1989 box office number-one films in the United States]]
* [[List of films featuring drones]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=N}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Back to the Future Part II}}
{{Wikivoyage|Back to the Future tourism#Back to the Future Part II (1989)|Back to the Future Part II}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{Official website|http://www.bttfmovie.com/}}
* {{IMDb title|0096874}}
* {{TCMDb title|67921}}
* {{mojo title|backtothefuture2}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|back_to_the_future_2}}
* {{Metacritic film}}

{{Back to the Future}}
{{Robert Zemeckis}}
{{BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects}}
{{Chicago Cubs}}

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