Crispin Glover played the role of George McFly in the movie Back to the Future. His character was the protagonist’s father, Marty McFly, played by Michael J. Fox. But did you know Glover was younger than his on-screen son?
Crispin Glover is actually three years younger than Michael J. Fox. At the time Glover landed the role of George McFly, he was 20 years old and assumed that the director chose him to play the young George McFly in Hill Valley High.
Who is Crispin Glover?
Crispin Hellion Glover was born on April 20, 1964, in New York City. At four, he moved to Los Angeles with his family. His parents were actors Bruce Glover and Marion Elizabeth Lillian Betty Krachey, who retired from the industry by the time he was born.
He attended the Mirman School then moved to Venice High for 10th and 11th grade. He finally graduated in 1982 from Beverly Hills High School. (Source: Back to the Future)
Crispin Glover as George McFly
Crispin Glover started his career at the age of 13. As a teenager, he appeared in several sitcoms like Happy Days and Family Ties. In 1938, he was cast for his first feature film, My Tutor. This eventually jumpstarted his career and led to parts in Teachers alongside Ralph Macchio and Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter.
At the age of 20, he was cast for the role of George McFly in Back to the Future at the time. He assumed he would be playing the young version of his character.
I was really happy with the role, but when I found out that I would also be playing George McFly at 47 — that’s when I knew this film would be fun. It was just about this time that I decided to focus in on motion pictures. I think it’s important to know your direction.
Crispin Glover
To prepare for the 47-year old George McFly, Glover would recall how his acting teacher spoke and moved. He would borrow his low but quirky tone, copy his posture and hand gestures, and the next thing he knew, his character took a life of its own. (Source: Back to the Future)
Why was Crispin Glover Not in Back to the Future II?
The first installation of the trilogy proved to be a huge success. But Glover did not come back for the sequel. While George McFly is still part of the storyline, and it does seem that Glover’s face was in the sequel, he did not sign up for the project. Instead, Robert Zemeckis, the director, used archival footage from the first movie and put Jeffrey Weissman under heavy prosthetics for extra scenes. This eventually led to a lengthy legal battle between the two parties.
There were several reasons why Glover did not want to be part of the film. Some of which include; disagreeing with the ending of the film and not getting paid enough for the amount of work he did. Glover and the producers had a falling out, which resulted in a three-decade feud that is still going strong.
Bob Gale lies about things, he really does, and I had to respond to certain lies. He was doing things essentially justifying the illegal actions he did. Every five years, they do some new kind of thing to promote and make money from, and he kind of comes up with new ways, he kind of keeps pushing the boundary every five years. In fact, I sent him a cease and desist order last time. He’s the only producer that does it, but because he’s the producer/writer, people actually listened and believed him, but he’s a liar.
Crispin Glover on Collider Live
(Source: Movie Web)