Back To The Future Part II honored the franchise’s past while paving the way for the third installment, but one cut detail would have provided better foreshadowing for the upcoming villain. Despite there only being three of them, the Back To The Future movies had sprawling timelines that were always in flux. That was just as true behind the scenes as on screen. Eric Stoltz was almost Marty McFly, the Jennifer character was recast twice, and there was a wealth of deleted scenes.
Regarding what made it into the finished product, few elements of Back To The Future Part II linger in the mind more than the famous hoverboard. The desired Christmas present of so many people all over the world, Marty McFly swiftly came into possession of one soon after landing in Back To The Future‘s 2015. Promptly chased by Griff Tannen and his goons, Marty summarily outsmarted them in a literal life-changing fashion. As well as being one of Back To The Future‘s most iconic scenes, it could have further set the stage for the third movie.
Griff’s Hoverboard In Back To The Future Part II Was Originally Called The “Mad Dog”
It Would Have Been One Of Many Ways Back To The Future Set Up Its Final Movie
There were several ways in which Back To The Future Part II set the stage for the third and final installment — even before the ill-fated lightning strike and Doc’s letter to Marty. Chief among them was Marty showing off his shooting skills on an arcade game machine. One that would have snuck under people’s radar almost came in the form of Griff Tannen’s hoverboard. Joining the ranks of Back To The Future deleted scenes, its original name was Mad Dog instead of the Pit Bull moniker that made it into the finished product.
The reveal came courtesy of archival production pH๏τos on the DVD boxset. Exactly why Robert Zemeckis went with the change remains unknown for the time being. Fans of the Back to the Future franchise, however, will no doubt recognize it as the disliked nickname of Biff Tannen’s wild west ancestor, Buford Tannen. Without that context, the name hint would likely have gone unnoticed for a while, with it believed to merely be a fitting description of Griff himself. Equally, it would have been a fun testament to the imagination that went into mapping out the Back to the Future 2 and 3 movies simultaneously.
The Original Name Of Griff’s Hoverboard Would Have Continued The Tannens’ Pattern
Keeping Mad Dog Would Have Given Back To The Future An Air Of Predestination
As well as being a fun nod from one installment to the next, using Mad Dog would have also worked on a deeper level. After all, the Back to the Future movies are nothing if not cyclical in nature. That’s especially true when it comes to the identical Tannen family. Their feud with the McFly family spans generations, for example. Mad Dog Tannen has as much contempt for Seamus McFly as Biff initially had for George and Griff had for Marty Jr. It was a trend that would likely have continued if Back to the Future 4 had ever happened.
Such incidents spoke to an almost predestination paradox hanging over proceedings.
On top of that, there was also the manure of it all. On the multiple occasions that Marty McFly clashed with the Tannen family, they were left humiliated and covered in manure. Such incidents spoke to an almost predestination paradox hanging over proceedings. Had the Mad Dog hoverboard name officially stuck, it would have spoken to that fact. It would have been a sign of Griff honoring his family history and taking inspiration. Equally, it would have been a sign of conflicts to come in Marty’s journey in Back to the Future II and III, showing that what goes around, comes around, until he learns to walk away.
