‘Back to the Future’ Time Machine Search Benefits MJFF

The now-classic 1985 film “Back to the Future” featured actor Michael J. Fox — who would go on to found The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) — and a time machine made from a DeLorean sports car. To support the organization and honor the movie, Discovery+ is bringing the vehicle back to life through a four-part series.

The limited series, “Expedition: Back to the Future,” is available on the new streaming service Discovery+ and unites familiar faces including actors Fox and Christopher Lloyd, who played the character Doc Brown.

Josh Gates, host of the Discovery Channel series “Expedition Unknown,” takes viewers through a journey to locate all the DeLoreans used in the film. The audience also will be able to bid on one-of-a-kind items, including a custom DeLorean “time machine,” to benefit the foundation.

“Josh will team up with the man behind Doc Brown, Christopher Lloyd, on the adventure of a lifetime,” a promotional Discovery webpage states. “The duo will journey across the country in search of the iconic car from “Back to the Future — The DeLorean Time Machine. If they find it, they hope to donate it to The Michael J. Fox Foundation.”

In their cross-country search, Gates and Lloyd will be joined by Fox and fellow actors from the film and two sequels, in addition to DeLorean experts, collectors, and fans of the iconic film.

“In a quest full of unexpected turns, the two will dive deep into the history of one of cinema’s greatest franchises and will stop at nothing in their search of the timeless vehicle from the classic sci-fi trilogy “Back to the Future,” the promotional material states.

In addition to streaming the series, viewers can join the discussion on social media using the hashtag #ExpeditionBacktotheFuture.

In the sci-fi comedy film, small-town California teen Marty McFly, played by Fox, is tossed back into the 1950s when an experiment by his eccentric scientist pal Brown goes haywire. Journeying through time in a modified DeLorean, McFly comes across younger versions of his parents and must make sure they fall in love or he’ll no longer exist. To compound matters, McFly must return to his own time and save Brown’s life.

Fox was diagnosed in 1991, at age 29, with Parkinson’s disease. He subsequently became an advocate for research to find a cure, and founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2000 to help fund that research.