One of the original stars from Robert Zemeckis’ beloved time-traveling epic, Back to the Future, says she wants to direct a film version of the stage musical. Since its debut in 1985, Back to the Future has been lavished with praise and a fanbase that never tires of the series.
With three films to its credit, the Back to the Future series is arguably one of the biggest achievements of Zemeckis’ career. And while the argument will forever continue as to which Back to the Future entry is the best, recent years have seen many fans continually asking for another sequel or, at the very least, a reboot. For their part, Zemeckis and screenwriter Bob Gale have flat out denied there will ever be any further films in the Back to the Future series or a reboot of any sort. However, early last year, a new stage production arrived in England that turned Back to the Future into a musical. Unfortunately, the musical’s lifespan was cut short not long after its premiere at the Manchester Opera House, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. The show will continue next spring, with dates already scheduled for London in May.
For now, though, a new MovieWeb interview with Lea Thompson – who played Marty McFly’s mother, Lorraine Baines - has revealed that she not only believes Universal is planning a film adaptation of the Back to the Future musical, but that the 59-year-old would like the chance to direct it. Thompson also explained that she would love for her daughter, Zoey, to play the role of Lorraine, should such a big-screen adaptation occur:
"Oh, I would do whatever they would ask me to do. But I would hope my daughter Zoey would get in audition for the Lorraine part. I think that would be awesome. I'd be all for it. I'm not sure what her opinion would be. But she is a really good singer. She sang in The Politician, and she's a great actress. So I think it would be a funny meta thing to do. They could put Michael Fox's son in it. And they could put my dog in it. And then they'll let me direct it. If Bob Zemeckis doesn't want to, I could direct it, so that would be fun."
Unbeknownst to many, Thompson has managed to build a sizeable director’s resume over the years. Based mainly in TV, the Back to the Future star took on her feature film directorial debut in 2017 with The Year of Spectacular Men. Exactly how she would handle the immense responsibility of bringing the first Back to the Future related film in decades to the big screen, however, is another story altogether. While Thompson feels confident that Universal is going to release a feature film adaptation of the musical, it does seem a little too early for such a project to be given the green light. As previously mentioned, the musical barely had time to create a buzz around it before the pandemic forced the production to shut down. That being said, the reviews were very good – though until it plays in bigger centers like London and New York City, it’s hard to imagine Universal committing to a film version.
Even if a Back to the Future film adaptation of the musical became a reality, the likelihood of Thompson being selected seems very slim. It’s safe to say that fans would want Robert Zemeckis to do the honors, but barring that, and despite Thompson’s experience directing TV, Hollywood has numerous other candidates with more prestigious track records to choose from. In the end, a truly experienced director would be what’s best for the project.
Source: MovieWeb