Netflix currently developing a Back to the Future animated spinoff
According to Giant Freak Robot, a spinoff animated series for Netflix is being developed from the adored Back to the Future franchise. According to their reliable sources, which have yet to be proven, the time travel series is looking to move to the streaming service for a new story continuation. However, it is unclear whether the new story will follow the original trilogy or introduce a new world in that universe. This is quite significant for Netflix because there has not been a narrative installment of the Back to the Future series since a short film in 2015.
The Back to the Future Netflix animated series' potential plot has few details at this time, but given that the protagonists have access to virtually all time and space, there are few boundaries to what it could be. The adventures of Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) and Emmett "Doc" Brown (Christopher Lloyd) and their attempts to alternately alter events or restore them to their original state comprised the sole focus of the original trilogy. Yet, in light of the fact that Back to What's to come has generally centered around the McFly family doesn't mean it must be about Marty this time.
This has happened before. From 1991-1992, CBS circulated a Back to What was to come enlivened show that principally followed the offspring of Doc Brown and his Old West spouse Clara (Mary Steenburgen), Jules and Verne, as they went through time and experienced some variant of the Tannen group of menaces in fundamentally every age of history. While the previous animated series did not feature Michael J. Fox, live-action segments did, and Christopher Lloyd's character was voiced by Mary Steenburgen. Thomas F. Wilson, Biff Tannen himself, portrayed various members of his fictional family throughout time.
Who knows what is in store for Netflix show's possibilities, Christopher Lloyd has reliably demonstrated his eagerness in proceeding to show up in the establishment and appears to be up for pretty much anything. Unfortunately, Michael J. Fox has had Parkinson's for a long time, making his extended involvement a little less certain. We can only hope that Fox will be more able and willing to reprise a voice-only role than a live-action one.
Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale created the Back to the Future series. They are said to have unusually tight control over the franchise and the ability to reject remakes and reboots (in contrast to George Lucas, who sold off his Star Wars franchise to Disney in 2012). This indicates that, despite the fact that Back to the Future has been franchised into a variety of video games, comic books, car commercials, roller coasters, and books, Netflix has had to get Gale and the director of one of the Pinocchio adaptations this year on board before anything can proceed.
We can finally anticipate some brand-new Back to the Future content from Netflix in the future because it appears that the streaming giant has been successful in acquiring the two actors. Based on Netflix's recent efforts, this also indicates that we might receive some very interesting promotional campaigns. It wouldn't be Marty and Doc's first encounter. Personally, I’m 50/50 whether I believe this or not. Considering the source, take it with a grain of salt. Nothing is a done deal, so until Universal, Bob Gale, Robert Zemeckis, or Netflix confirms, I’d say this is all rumor right now. We will keep a close eye on this!
Dec. 23, 2022: UPDATE: Most recently, the Official Back to the Future Twitter page dispelled the rumor as false. I’ve also been told personally by a few people close to Zemeckis that the rumor are FALSE as well.
IMDB does show a Back to the Future 2023 listing of a series… but anyone can create something like that. I think it’s likely this is a rumor and not happening. I’ll trust the official BTTF response until anything else comes out.
