A handful of scenes were cut from Back to the Future for varying reasons. Though they weren’t in the movie itself, many were represented in the novelization. Plus, they’ve been included in home video releases of the time travel film.
Released in 1985, Robert Zemeckis’ Back to the Future is without question one of the most iconic movies of the decade. In the first installment of the Back to the Future trilogy. the focus of the story was on Marty McFly and Doc Brown’s adventure trip through time in the DeLorean where they became trapped in 1955. Their efforts to get back to 1985 and also to ensure that Marty’s birth wasn’t undone by their time travel antics created a multitude of memorable moments that made the movie the classic that it is. So many are still loved by audiences today.
However, not everything that Zemeckis filmed for Back to the Future made it into the final cut. Quite a few scenes were excluded from the theatrical release, but eventually came to be appreciated by fans once they were shown. Some were were longer, alternative versions of important scenes while others featured entirely new material. Here's what all of Back to the Future's deleted scenes were, and why they were cut.
Peanut Brittle
Set at the beginning of the movie after George McFly (Crispin Glover) was hassled by Biff (Thomas F. Wilson) in 1985, "Peanut Brittle" shows Marty trying to to convince to him to just say "no" instead of giving in all the time. But when a man and his daughter come to their home and to ask him to buy a case of Sophie Mae peanut brittle, George once again disappoints Marty by agreeing without much resistance. While this scene further highlights Marty's disapproval of his father's behavior and helps to characterizes George as a pushover, this point is gotten easily gotten across by other events in the movie. It not being necessary to the story likely accounts for its exclusion. That being said, it does provide an explanation for another moment. Later on, Marty frowned when he saw George pouring milk over a bowl of Sophie Mae peanut brittle.
Pinch Me
The second deleted scene comes shortly after Marty has arrived in 1955. Still in disbelief over what happened, Marty asks a woman several times to pinch him. Having gotten the wrong idea about Marty's request, she slaps him across the face. When she leaves, a police officer approaches Marty, but says nothing. Though this does have some degree of comedic value, it adds very little to the movie, thus easily justifying its omission.
Doc's Personal Belongings
Back to the Future cut a scene that took place after Marty's first meeting with the 1955 version of Doc Brown. At his lab, Doc looked through a suitcase packed by his older counterpart. Here, he marvels at modern undergarments, a hair dryer, and a most notably, an issue of Playboy. A surprised Doc opened it up and said, "suddenly the future's looking a whole lot better". Though Doc Brown's comments are indicative of Playboy being a product of the future, the magazine actually began publication in 1953. The decision to delete the scene can be attributed to its long length, as it takes entirely too long to develop.
She's Cheating
During a visit to the high school, Marty and Doc checked in on Lorraine in class. Much to Marty's dismay, Lorraine was looking over a classmate's shoulder for the answers to a test. Afterward, she told a friend that she got an "F" anyway. What Marty saw here contributed to his opinion that Lorraine wasn't the person he thought she was. But, like the situation with other Back to the Future deleted scenes, "She's Cheating" didn't reveal anything that wasn't already inferred by other moments in the story. 1955 Lorraine's advances toward Marty, smoking, and underage drinking made it abundantly clear that as a teenager, Marty's mother wasn't as principled and upstanding as he originally thought.
Darth Vader From Planet Vulcan
"Darth Vader from Planet Vulcan" is an extended take on one of the movie's most popular scenes. In the movie, Marty did a Darth Vader impersonation to scare George in the middle of the night into asking Lorraine out on a date. The deleted version goes into much greater detail by showing Marty deliver specific instructions about where he must take Lorraine, inform George that he has endangered the "time-space continuum", knock him out with chloroform, and get away in Doc's car. Approximately two minutes of this was edited out for the theatrical cut. Bob Gale, who co-wrote the script, explained in a DVD commentary of Back to the Future that since George thoroughly explained to Marty what "Darth Vader" told him to do at another point in the movie, there wasn't a need for Marty's instructions to be said twice.
Hit Me George!
In a very brief and inconsequential exchange that doesn't last more than 15 seconds, Marty McFly tries to get George to punch him, but the latter only makes a half-hearted attempt and refuses to do anything else. Since the plan for George to impress Lorraine by punching Marty was straightforward in the movie, the setup provided by the scene wasn't important.
Got A Permit?
During Back to the Future's final act, Doc was trying to rig up the cables for the lightning strike when they were accosted by a police officer asking for a permit. Doc told him that he did, and then produced his wallet. What happened next wasn't shown, but since the cop didn't trouble them any further, it was assumed that Doc used a bribe to get rid of him. This was confirmed by a deleted scene where Christopher Lloyd's character handed him a wad of cash. Following this move, Marty conferred upon Doc his concerns about flirting with Lorraine for their plan. He was worried that going through with this might "screwed up" his future so much that he would become gay later on in life. Due to the nature of the joke, some responded to it with a great deal of criticism, but it's not clear if the line had anything to do with it being deleted. Either way, this conversation certainly wasn't essential to the story.
Phone Booth
In Back to the Future's ending, George complicated Marty's plan by showing up late at the parking lot. This forced Marty to stall with Loraine and also gave Biff time to get involved. George's absence can be explained by "Phone Booth", where George is trapped in a phone booth by bullies. Instead of immediately letting him out, Principal Strickland took this opportunity to criticize him for always being a slacker. It's been said by some that the scene may have been omitted because it made Strickland even more unlikeable, and more of a bully himself that a strict disciplinarian.