Christopher Lloyd is on a mission, and it has nothing to do with saving Marty McFly’s kids. This time, he and Expedition Unknown host Josh Gates are on a journey to find the perfect, screen-used DeLorean DMC-12. Their journey is the subject of a brand new discovery+ series, Expedition: Back to the Future, which debuted on the new streaming platform Monday. Along the way, the two meet several other Back to the Future alums, including Michael J. Fox, Lea Thompson, and Principal Strickland himself, James Tolkan. Let’s just hope they’re not slackers.
While the main DeLorean used in the original Back to the Future movie is on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, six other cars were made for the movies, notes Entertainment Weekly. Gates and Lloyd, 82, decided to team up for a cross-country search to find one of them to auction off to benefit The Michael J. Fox Foundation. Along the journey, they met Fox, Thompson, Tolkan, and Donald Fullilove, as well as Back to the Future franchise co-creator Bob Gale. They also met with several BTTF fans.
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Lloyd also reprised his role as Doc Brown on the show, which he found to be an “interesting” prospect. “I mean, for Doc Brown to come back and be in present time,” the living legend explained to TooFab. “I was intrigued by being Doc Brown and also being Chris, and how that was gonna work out and what that would mean in various ways. So, it was kind of an adventure.”
The actor was also happy to work with Gates. At first, he was concerned they would not click, but they found instant chemistry after their first meeting. “Before I met Josh, I really didn’t know that much about him that I could go on,” Lloyd said. “So, I was wondering, that’s so important, that chemistry there had to really work for the whole thing. And then I met him and it suddenly it just seemed instinctive. The chemistry just seemed to be in place without having to change our shape.”
Although it has been 35 years since Back to the Future was released, the franchise is still one of the most beloved science fiction movies ever made. It spawned two sequels, an animated series, a theme park attraction, and an upcoming stage musical. Director Robert Zemeckis has thankfully resisted making a reboot or a fourth film. As for why the franchise is still beloved, Lloyd thinks it has to do with the basic story of the original film, more than the time travel aspect.
“Back to the Future, it’s Michael J. Fox, his mom, and dad,” Lloyd told TooFab. “It’s a family picture and they go through some surprising times themselves. All families have that in one way or another. You know everyone relates to that. Everybody relates to Michael J. Fox as a teenager, going through school.”
