Gotta Get Back in TimeTime-travelin' through the '80s franchise that features Marty McFly, Doc Brown, Biff Tannen, Crispin Glover, a DeLorean, a flux capacitor, a hoverboard, a dog named Einstein, and a Part III you probably don't even remember.
Updated July 24, 2022 2.1K votes 427 voters 24.6K views
Voting Rules
Vote up the most irritating plot holes.
Time travel movies aren't exactly known for being the most accurate (being based on something that doesn't exist yet and all…), but some movies get it right more than others. The Back to the Future franchise does manage to stay cohesive for the most part, but there definitely are some glaring plot holes.
Below, fans have shared which plot holes irritate them the most. Vote up the ones you agree with!
1
284 VOTES
Why Would Marty Need To Travel To The Future To Prevent Something That Hasn't Happened Yet, When He Could Just Make Different Decisions In The Present To Prevent That Future
The big question Is why would 1985 Marty need to travel to 2015 to prevent something that hasn’t happened yet? Wouldn’t It be easier for Doc to just explain - “Something has to be done about your future kids Marty. And here’s what you should do to prevent it”???
284 votes
2
269 VOTES
The Time-Travel Rules Get Bent When Biff Gives His Younger Self The Almanac, So Why Can't They Be Bent Again For Doc And Marty To Go Back And Stop Him From Gaining The Almanac In The First Place?
In Back to the Future II, the Biff from 2015 was able to go to 1955 by stealing the DeLorean in order to give himself an almanac. After that, Old-Biff returned to 2015 and left the DeLorean where he found it. Marty and Doc then traveled back to 1985 and find that their present was changed due to Biff having that almanac. At some point in the movie, Marty suggests going back to the future in order to prevent Old-Biff from ever having the almanac. Doc then says it’s impossible because if they did that, then they’d end up in the future of this new present as opposed to the future they were previously in.
However, doesn’t that reasoning conflict with how Old-Biff was able to return to 2015 earlier in the movie? He gave his younger self the almanac which should have split the timeline and prevented him from going back to the 2015 that Marty and Doc were in and Marty and Doc should have been trapped in 2015.
The trilogy doesn't keep consistent rules of time travel. When Doc and Morty go back in time to change the past they go to the new future they've created every time. However when Biff goes back in time to change the past he goes back to the same future he came from instead of the new one he created.
269 votes
3
235 VOTES
Doc Didn't Need To Worry About Parts For The Delorean Because There Were Two Of Them In 1885
Isn't there a second time machine hidden in a cave, planted for Marty to find in 1955, that just needs a circuit replaced? They could take the fixed circuit from the car Marty takes back to 1885, or take the fuel line and gas from the car doc takes back to 1885.
235 votes
4
186 VOTES
If Marty Hadn't Been Late In Starting The Delorean, The Car Would've Gone Through The Theater - Meaning Doc's Calculations Were Wrong
Marty did not accelerate the Delorean when the alarm went off. It was off by a few seconds. If the car didn’t die and he took off at the sound of the alarm he would have went right through the theater.
It’s off by about ten seconds. That’s a significant screw up on Doc’s part, especially knowing he only had one chance to get it right. This has always bothered me too. As far as a car starting just by hitting it with your head (as someone else mentioned) I think Marty was also turning the key when he smacked his head on the wheel.
The clock tower gets hit by lightning at 10:04. So Doc has Marty drive the hook under the wire at the exact right time. How??? A lightning strike takes 1/15th of a second to strike. There are 60 seconds that will pass while the clock reads 10:04. That means to drive the DeLorean under it at the exact right moment would be a 1 in 900 shot. There is no way Doc would rely on these odds when he was so meticulous about everything.
186 votes
5
169 VOTES
Biff Remembers Seeing A Flying DeLorean, But Marty Doesn't Remember Time-Travel At All?
So Future Marty and Future Jennifer do not seem to recall being time travelers. They would remember their trip to the future otherwise (At least Marty would, Jennifer was knocked out for most of it).
We also see that Old Biff remembers seeing the flying DeLorean in 1985 when at the beginning of the movie he walks outside as it is taking off and then when he sees it again in 2015 he recalls that moment before stealing it for a few hours.
If Biff remembers the flying DeLorean, how would Marty not remember time traveling to 2015?
169 votes
6
156 VOTES
The DeLorean Was Hidden For Marty To Find So He Could Help Doc... So Why Didn't Doc Leave A Note Or Something Asking Him To Bring Gas With Him?
The real plot hole is why Marty and Doc didn't go to the mine, leave a note there that said to bring gasoline along on the trip, and then presto! There's their gasoline that they need!
When Marty and Doc Brown are stuck in 1885 with no gasoline, why don't they write a letter to their future selves to come back to that exact date and time to give them some gasoline? It seems like a safer bet than to risk everything with the train scheme.
