Universal Pictures

The studio that distributed Back to the Future and built a multimedia franchise on it.

Universal Pictures is the American film production and distribution company that distributed Back to the Future. A development deal for the film was secured with Universal Pictures following Robert Zemeckis's success directing Romancing the Stone (1984), and filming took place mainly at the Universal Studios Lot and on location in California. Spurred by the film's dedicated fan following and effect on popular culture, Universal Studios launched a multimedia franchise, which now includes video games, theme park rides, an animated television series, and a stage musical.

Lore & Background

The Hill Valley town square and clock tower were a set built on the Universal Studios backlot in Universal City, California. Back to the Future: The Ride, a simulator ride, ran from 1991 to 2007 at Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Florida. In October 2020, IDW Publishing debuted Transformers/Back to the Future, a four-issue crossover comic miniseries marking the 35th anniversary of Hasbro's Transformers and Universal Pictures' Back to the Future.

Reader's Guide

The series was written by Cavan Scott and illustrated by Juan Samu. For those interested in the physical media, Hasbro released a toy figure of Gigawatt based on the DeLorean time machine as part of their Transformers Collaborative line.