The Back to the Future series has been a cultural phenomenon since its debut back in 1985, which is why it is important to look back on the beloved franchise and explore where it all took place. The trilogy follows the time-traveling antics of Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) and Emmett "Doc" Brown (Christopher Lloyd) as they tackle a myriad of time-space paradoxes and moral conundrums. With each installment tackling its own take on time travel and its many consequences, the series keeps its core concept fresh and exciting while allowing its more comedic moments to embrace the ridiculous nature of it all.
Written by Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis back in 1980 the original script proved to be a difficult sell for the pair as they shopped it around Hollywood. After some misfired casting decisions and a series of production delays, finally debuting in July 1985, Back to the Future became an immediate commercial success. The series blew all expectations out of the water, appealing to audiences and critics alike. With the trail blazed ahead of them Gale and Zemeckis would return to the beloved series with Back to the Future Part II and III. With so much emphasis placed on time, it's important to reflect on the real-world space of where Marty McFly and Doc Brown's epic time-traveling saga.
11 Whittier High School - Whittier, California (Back to the Future Part I & II)
The location of the fictional Hill Valley High School, Whittier High School serves as a major location for much of the first film as the school of Marty McFly as well as his parents. With its imposing two-story art deco exterior, it is easy to see why the location fits perfectly for the script. Coincidentally, Whittier High School also happens to be the alma mater of Richard Nixon and John Lasseter. Far from being brand new when Marty McFly sees it in 1955, the school's origin is actually much closer to 1885, having been established in 1900. Being built only fifteen years before the events of Back to the Future III perhaps Biff's great-grandfather could have even been the principal.
10 Puente Hills Mall - City of Industry, California (Back to the Future Part I)
The iconic Twin Pines Mall is a central set piece, setting up most of the first movie's major plot points as well as showcasing the series-defining time-traveling DeLorean. While it would be difficult to find any Libyan terrorists gunning down of the scientific community today, the mall has been the victim of urban decline and pandemic-related closures. With only three remaining anchor stores and a rash of smash-and-grab robberies, the mall could be considered on life with little hope for its future.
9 Walt Disney's Golden Oak Ranch - Newhall, California (Back to the Future Part I)
It's likely most viewers have seen this destination in more than a few productions, as it serves as one of the largest "movie ranches" in the Los Angeles area. The parking lot that was Twin Pines Mall transforms into rural Hill Valley as Doc's DeLorean takes Marty into the past. Smashing into a nearby barn, Marty wakes up a frightened family, and his subsequent escape ends up destroying one of the supposed Twin Pines, causing the aforementioned mall in the future to be renamed Lone Pine. The real-life ranch has been an active shooting location for a massive number of productions including Bonanza, The Dukes of Hazard, The Muppets, and Westworld (TV show).
8 Bushnell Avenue - South Pasadena, California (Back to the Future Part I)
McFly's modest single-family home can be found on Bushnell Avenue in South Pasadena. A setting knee-deep in middle American kitsch, the home of Marty McFly is something millions of American teenagers could relate to at the time. Crispin Glover's George McFly seems right at home in this environment, soaking up rays from the idiot box and luxuriating in salted carbs while poor Lorraine seems to sink into copious amounts of alcohol and cigarettes. Interestingly enough, the comedy Old School would be filmed only a few houses down the street almost twenty years later.
7 Griffith Park - Los Angeles, California (Back to the Future Part II)
Griffith Park is an iconic piece of Hollywood scenery, particularly for its titular Griffith Park Observatory found at the top. Featured in countless films and TV shows, the observatory itself is nowhere to be found. Instead, the filmmakers opted to use the location's lesser-known areas to flesh out Biff Tannen and Marty McFly's battle for the sports almanac, the central McGuffin of Back to the Future Part II. With a clever mix of digital and practical effects, the scene holds up even by today's standards. Luckily, no hoverboards were harmed in the making of the Griffith Park chase sequence.
6 Oakhurst St. - El Monte, California (Back to the Future II)
Playing the part of Jennifer and Marty's future home is the small suburb of Hilldale, the address of suckers. The fantastic world of 2015 displays the home decked out in futuristic technology like digital window panes, multiscreen TVs, and a fully voiced home automated system. While Back to the Future Part II is not completely wrong in its depiction of the future, the crowded home does bear a striking resemblance to the original McFly house's middle-class ennui. In reality, the modest three-bed, three-bath home would set the McFly family over $750,000 at the time of writing this article., which for a single-income household in sunny California, it could be much, much worse.
5 Hollywood United Methodist Church - Hollywood, California (Back to the Future Part I and II)
The Hollywood United Methodist Church sits as the stand-in for the Hill Valley High School's dance location in both Back to the Future Part I and II. While a departure from the Whittier High location featured prominently in the first film, some smart framing and filmmaking techniques allow the change to happen almost unnoticed. Utilizing its more art deco architecture to help convey the original location aesthetically, the church was a smart choice as a stand-in for the high school's classic 1950s look with.
4 Magnolia Ave - Monrovia, California (Back to the Future Part II & III)
Jennifer's house in both Back to the Future II and III is the home base of normalcy, with the main characters returning to it to find their bearings. A beautiful and modest home, the real-life location can be found on Magnolia Avenue in Monrovia, California. With three bedrooms and four bathrooms, the idyllic cottage-style home built in 1905 would cost an estimated $1.5 million as of writing this article. With such a peaceful and quiet childhood house it is clear to see why Jennifer found her future home to be so disconcerting. Maybe Hilldale really is the address of suckers.
3 Sierra Railroad - Jamestown, California (Back to the Future Part III)
The beautiful, wide-open spaces of Jamestown, California are a picturesque location for any western. Keeping its train system alive and well has paid off for the town too, earning the town the title of a California Historical Landmark. As it finally pays homage to one of Back to the Future Part II's details hidden in plain sight, Part III's entire plot revolves around the powerful locomotives the town was built around. Its lush rural aesthetic has had the town featured in several productions as well, including the movie Hidalgo (2004). Jamestown even has a museum where you can see the Back to the Future Part III's train as well as other props from the movie.
2 Monument Valley - Utah and Arizona (Back to the Future Part III)
The location of the fictional Pohatchee Drive-In, and Marty's run-in with a tribe of Native Americans, is in the historic national treasure known as Monument Valley. As a less incorporated part of Hill Valley, the 1955s Doc Brown explains to Marty that the abandoned drive-in is the only location he knows of that would allow Marty to safely travel back in time one hundred years. The incredible and very real national park, Monument Valley with its iconic plateaued mountains and vast valleys, has been used in countless films and shows, even inspiring Radiator Springs from the Cars series.
