The Back To The Future movies are a flawless trilogy, and the greatest movie in the series is Back To The Future Part II. Its wonderfully optimistic portrayal of the then-future year of 2015 is utterly charming, even if audiences are still waiting for hoverboards and flying cars to become a reality. Fans have recently been celebrating the date that Marty McFly traveled to in 2015, October 21st, by sharing their favorite predictions that have since come true.
Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis’s screenplay has correctly identified various future technologies. Marty’s visit to 2015 sees him encounter a few unusual gadgets that have now become commonplace in households in the 2020s. Back To The Future Part II’s futuristic society seems significantly less advanced today.
Updated on September 7, 2024, by Robert Vaux: Back to the Future Part II famously tried to avoid predicting what the world would look like 25 years after it was produced. Instead, it went for fun and humor, riffing on the movies’ often-absurd efforts to depict how an unknowable future will go. Ironically, it still proved to be more accurate than most serious-minded movies about the future. Five more entries have been added to the article, and the formatting has been adjusted to match CBR’s current guidelines.
15 Multiscreen TVs Are Essentially a Part of Every Computer
|
Title |
Tomatometer Rating |
Metacritic Metascore |
IMDb Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Back to the Future Part II |
63% |
57 |
7.8 |
Once upon a time, the idea of a TV or computer screen showing more than one image at once felt like science fiction, even though split-screen techniques had been used since the early days of the movies. They were usually under the control of the broadcaster, however, allowing for, say, a newscaster to appear in one onscreen image with the incident they were reporting on another screen. In 1989, it wasn’t something consumers could access.
Times have changed. The advent of desktop computers makes multiscreen media consumption a daily event for most people. Granted, most people still focus on one channel at a time, but it does give Back to the Future Part II a chance to reveal Marty McFly Jr.’s viewing habits. It’s hard to say that the movie didn’t see that one coming.
14 Wall-Mounted TVs Were Very Rare in the ’80s
The McFlys’ entertainment center in 2015 comprised a huge chunk of wall space. It doesn’t elicit much notice in the modern era when flatscreen TVs have become the norm in every household, and indeed, the technology has been around in some form or another since at least the 1960s. The comparative size of the screen in the movie matches several models available for sale today.
They didn’t hit critical mass among the general public until the mid-2000s, however. Before then, home TVs were invariably cathode ray tube (CRT) models, which were boxy and large, and couldn’t readily be mounted. While the technology existed, the movie is still eerily accurate in its prediction of how it would be used.
13 Smart Clothes
The internet didn’t exist when Back to the Future II opened, and very few people had any inkling of what was coming. The movie pulls a reasonably accurate rabbit out of its hat on the front, with Marty’s 2015 jacket. It automatically sizes itself for him and even self-dries after it becomes wet.
Thanks to the Internet, that kind of product is rapidly becoming the norm. Sensors can be sewn into fabrics to monitor the wearer’s vital signs, while smart labels can help manufacturers track clothing through the production cycle. Clothes can be custom-made more readily with such data — matching the details in the film — and sensors can analyze gaming and exercise moves to help people improve their technique. The movie isn’t completely accurate, but considering the realities of 1989, it comes surprisingly close in several ways.
12 Hill Valley Goes Green
One of the trilogy’s more subtle touches is what a dump Hill Valley’s downtown is, even in the happier version of 1985. The first Back to the Future helps differentiate Marty’s dismal present from the happier and more optimistic past of 1955 that his parents occupied. By 2015, the town had apparently gotten its act together on that front: greener, cleaner, and bustling with friendly businesses.
The movie more or less reflects reality at that point. Cities have focused on mixed-use neighborhoods as a means of revitalizing formerly dilapidated neighborhoods, most famously in places like New York and Baltimore. The cost and efficiency of such programs are always political hot buttons, but today many cities recognize the need to renovate and “green” their landscapes, following in Hill Valley’s footsteps.
11 Camera Drones Are Common Objects
Marty McFly witnesses many drones hovering through the sky in Back To The Future Part II. Drones have become a hugely popular aspect of modern culture since Back To The Future Part II, and they were made available commercially in the early 2010s. The most common usage for drones is for aerial photography.
Marty witnesses a news crew using drones to complete airborne shots of the courthouse wreckage following Marty’s hoverboard chase. This is not dissimilar to how real-life film and television productions utilize these devices for photos and videos — not to mention folks making social media posts. Dog-walking drones can also be bought in many places, which are reminiscent of the contraptions spotted by Marty in Back To The Future Part II.
10 Many Homes Now Have Voice-Activated Lights
Jennifer Parker does not have the best reputation within the Back To The Future franchise, with many moviegoers regarding her as one of the sci-fi genre’s worst-written female characters. Nevertheless, her role in Back To The Future Part II highlights one of the film’s most remarkable inventions. Hill Valley cops escort her to her future home, where its lights are activated by vocal commands.
When Back To The Future Part II was originally released, voice-activated lights seemed many years away. Modern citizens, however, are now able to connect their smart devices, including Apple Home and Alexa to special bulbs. These smart bulbs allow the user to turn the lights on by using their voice.
9 Smart Glasses Are Here, Though Not Necessarily Popular
Back To The Future Part II showcases a future where wearable technology is all the rage. Among the most memorable devices in the film are Marty McFly Jr.’s smart glasses. He uses these fashionable spectacles at the McFly household dinner table, which conveniently stops him from recognizing that his mom, Jennifer, is looking a couple of decades younger.
Back To The Future Part II’s smart glasses are capable of streaming television and making video calls. In 2014, Google launched Google Glass, which contained the same features as Marty McFly Jr.’s smart glasses. Sadly, these proved extremely unpopular among consumers, resulting in Google removing them from sale in 2015.
8 Mobile Payment Technology Is a Daily Occurrence
Among the most accurate predictions in Back To The Future Part II concerns mobile payment technology. The sci-fi classic shows Marty being asked to donate to the Hill Valley clock tower through a fingerprint-scanning device. This is not dissimilar to how people now use their phones to make virtual payments.
Biff Tannen — a movie bully people love to hate — uses mobile payment technology to pay for a taxi in Back To The Future Part II. In reality, apps like Uber and Lyft accept digital cash methods for their taxi services. Back To The Future Part II’s claims no longer seem so outlandish, with mobile software also offering virtual payment choices.
7 Legacy Sequels Are Everywhere
One of the most iconic scenes in Back To The Future Part II concerns Hill Valley’s Holomax Theater. In the Back To The Future timeline, Steven Spielberg’s son Max has taken over the Jaws movie franchise and produced its 19th movie. Although the Jaws saga has yet to receive this many movies, there have been many legacy sequels to beloved franchises lately, which share a similar sentiment to the “Jaws 19” notion.
Nostalgic follow-ups to films such as Jumanji and Top Gun have dominated cinema in recent years. Back To The Future Part II also predicted that a Steven Spielberg franchise would have new installments in the mid-2010s, with Jurassic World expertly reviving the Jurassic Park movies.
6 Fingerprint Technology Can Be Used Anywhere
Fingerprint technology is prevalent throughout Back To The Future Part II. Most notably, Christopher Lloyd’s Doc Brown — who is considered one of the best nerdy characters — spots this clever creation being used by the Hill Valley cops to identify Jennifer McFly. Today, police forces across the world utilize fingerprint scanners to identify criminals during arrests.
Scanning fingerprints is also utilized within Back To The Future Part II to unlock doors, as shown by Jennifer while she explores her future home. Although this Back To The Future Part II technology isn’t quite commonplace in modern homes, some households are now equipped with doors that can be opened by scanning a fingerprint. There are business apps and similar apps that can do the same thing on a person’s phone.
5 ’80s Nostalgia Hit in a Big Way
Back To The Future Part II presents Marty with a 2015 eating establishment that’s remarkably similar to his home time. He visits the Cafe 80’s in Back To The Future Part II, which uses virtual waiters that take on the forms of various iconic ’80s stars, including Michael Jackson and Ronald Reagan, to serve customers’ food. This Back To The Future Part II prediction is not too dissimilar to how famous ’80s celebrities such as Bill Murray and Matthew Broderick appeared in iconic Super Bowl ads to evoke a sense of nostalgia.
In fact, ’80s nostalgia has become the driving factor for a number of contemporary reboots and sequels. That includes the likes of Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, the sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and the live-action Transformers franchise. The Netflix hit Stranger Things, especially, has exploited ’80s nostalgia for its adventurous narrative.
4 Holograms Are Used in Entertainment
One of Back To The Future Part II’s most hilarious sequences takes place outside the Holomax Theater. Marty McFly, who has delivered one of the best Back To The Future quotes, is horrified as he is eaten by a holographic shark advertising Jaws 19. In the 1980s, holographic devices only existed in sci-fi movies. In a quieter step, holographic screens are used to deliver news and advertisements in a public space. This awe-inspiring technology has become a reality since Back To The Future Part II.
Holograms are most commonly found in music concerts, recreating popular artists including Freddie Mercury and Elvis Presley for arena tours. Perhaps the closest to Back To The Future Part 2’s Holomax Theater is ABBA Voyage, which operates from a music venue in London designed specifically for performances by ABBA holograms.
3 Hands-Free Gaming Is an Option for Many
Back To The Future Part II makes a particularly bold suggestion when it comes to gaming. Marty McFly’s visit to the Cafe 80’s sees him meet a group of kids, who declare the game Lone Gunman to be a “baby’s toy” because gamers must use their hands to play. Today, this funny sequence from Back To The Future Part II recalls a few gaming peripherals that were popular in the late-2000s.
Devices such as the Nintendo Wii, PlayStation Move, and Xbox Kinect perfectly match the description in Back To The Future Part II of hands-free gaming. Instead, gamers use their bodies to control the characters. This unique gameplay lives on with the Nintendo Switch’s JoyCons, which also contain motion-based technology.
2 Zoom Delivered Video Calling
Among the main innovations in Back To The Future Part II is video calling. This is displayed when Marty McFly’s future self is fired by his boss via video link after he discovers Marty and Needles’ attempt to scam his company. Back To The Future Part II depicts a future where residents make video calls rather than use traditional phones.
Since Back To The Future Part II, video calling companies like Zoom have been adopted by several households. As in the movie, these video calls can also be projected onto a television screen through an HDMI cable, and are frequently utilized in the workplace. Many homes no longer use regular landlines, and instead either opt for smartphones or video calling.
1 The Cubs Won The World Series One Year After the Movie Predicted
Back to the Future II uses the fictional 2015 World Series to set up Marty’s disastrous purchase of the sports almanac. It’s intended as a fun play on normalization, as the perennial losers Chicago Cubs beat Miami in the movie to finally win the World Series. At the time, the Cubs were one of professional sports’ most hapless teams, having failed to win a championship since 1908 or even make the Series since 1945. Naturally, Marty is more interested in the Miami team (which didn’t exist in 1989) while a 2015 resident is far more jazzed about breaking “The Curse of the Goat.”
- In a strange twist of fate, Back to the Future, Part II opened just a few months after the team made the playoffs for only the second time in 44 years — but they lost to the New York Mets before reaching the Series.
- Cubs fans were still nursing their wounds when the film premiered.
As it turns out, the movie hits a lot of details surprisingly close to the mark. One year after the film’s 2015 setting, the Cubs finally broke the curse, beating their fellow hard-luckers, the Cleveland Indians, in seven games to win the World Series. Furthermore, Florida did indeed get its own Major League team in 1993: The Florida Marlins, who became the Miami Marlins in 2012. Back to the Future Part II misses a few details (the film’s Florida team is apparently the Gators, and they play in the American League), but given that the Marlins won the World Series twice before 2015, it was indeed a much bigger deal when the Cubs won it all.