Eddie Van Halen’s Uncredited Guitar Solo in ‘Back to the Future’ Surprises Fans
In 1985, there was no one more on top of the Hollywood hill than Michael J. Fox. At the time, the young comedian was killing it as Alex P. Keaton on the beloved sitcom Family Ties when he got the opportunity of a lifetime. Fox was approached to replace teen heartthrob Eric Stoltz in a little film called Back to the Future, which would ultimately define and solidify the TV actor’s film career.
The movie has become something of a classic decades later, with memorable scenes and lines that have transcended generations. There are so many iconic moments that immediately come to mind, from Fox’s epic run in the time-traveling DeLorean to his standout solo at the “Enchantment Under the Sea Dance.” One of those iconic scenes is when Marty (Fox) dons a “space outfit” and blasts his father George (Crispin Glover) with a shredding guitar solo someone in the ’50s never would have experienced, in an effort to convince him to go along with his plan to ask out his mom.
What many don’t know is that the face-melting guitar solo was actually provided by an uncredited Eddie Van Halen.
Related: ‘Back to the Future’ Star, 61, Makes Rare Public Appearance and Looks Utterly Ageless
How Eddie Van Halen’s Solo Work Ended Up in ‘Back to the Future’
According to ScreenRant, the band Van Halen actually turned down the studio’s request to use their full music catalog in the film. The guitarist’s work ended up being featured through a clever loophole instead. In the scene, Marty loads a cassette tape into a Walkman labeled “Edward Van Halen” as a workaround, but the music was very much his. In fact, Eddie had previously co-written the score for Universal’s The Wild Life in 1984, and the riff featured in Back to the Future was an unreleased outtake cut from that project.
Now, if you were hoping that there was a secret, full-length Van Halen track the riff was pulled from, sadly there is not.
According to TMZ, Eddie confirmed his involvement but admitted it was just him “playing a bunch of noise.”
It was a fun movie detail that Fox himself felt proud of.
“This will sound strange, but Eddie Van Halen passed away the other day, and he had a cameo in Back To The Future,” he told The Guardian in 2020, right after the prolific guitarist’s untimely death. “My kids found a picture of me from 1985 with Eddie Van Halen, where I look 12, and he looks 14, and I thought, ‘What a cool life I’ve lived, where my kids can find a picture of me with Van Halen on the internet.’ It’s like looking back on footprints in the sand. Look where I’ve been.”
Decades later, this film continues to prove itself as the gift that keeps on giving.
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This story was originally published by Parade on Sep 7, 2026, where it first appeared in the Movies section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.