Yes—screenwriter Bob Gale said the filmmakers had Donald Trump in mind when shaping alternate-1985 Biff Tannen in Back to the Future Part II. Gale pointed to the moment Biff matches the pose in his office portrait. That makes “Biff is Trump” shorthand for an inspiration Gale later described, not a claim that every version of Biff is a direct portrait of Trump.
What Bob Gale said about Trump and Biff
Asked whether the filmmakers had Trump in mind, Gale answered: “We thought about it when we made the movie! Are you kidding?” The remark appears in a 2015 report about the film’s co-writer, looking back on a movie released in 1989. The Hollywood Reporter’s account records Gale’s response and his reference to the portrait pose.
Gale’s comment is the basis for the comparison. It is a retrospective account, rather than a contemporaneous production document, and the available reporting does not pin down when during production the idea arose.
Why alternate-1985 Biff invites the comparison
The reference is specifically to the alternate 1985 created after Biff gets his hands on the sports almanac—not to Biff in every timeline. In that version, Biff is a wealthy businessman whose power extends beyond his casino: he uses money to influence U.S. politics. The Guardian describes his fictional casino as 27 stories tall. The Guardian’s 2015 report connects those details to Gale’s explanation.
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The comparison is therefore about a character portrayal—wealth, public image and political influence—as well as a visual cue. In the office scene Gale cited, alternate Biff adopts the same pose as the portrait hanging behind him. The gesture makes the resemblance explicit within the film, while Gale’s recollection supplies the claim about creative intent.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the comparison does—and does not—establish
- It does establish: Gale said the filmmakers thought of Trump while making the film and identified the portrait pose as a relevant detail.
- It does not establish: the exact point in production when the idea emerged, or that alternate Biff was based exclusively on Trump.
- It should not be generalized: the comparison concerns the rich, politically powerful alternate-1985 Biff, not the character across all timelines.
The casino figure is part of the fictional story, not a measurement about Trump. It should also be kept separate from the real-world Trump Plaza Hotel: The Daily Beast reported that hotel as 37 floors, not 27 stories. The Daily Beast’s report discusses the distinction.
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- Genre: Science Fiction; Comedy
- Number of Discs: 3
- Number of Tracks: 0
- Playback Duration: 116
- Rating: PG
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