Why Biff's Friends Call Marvin Berry's Bandmate A "Spook" In Back To The Future (2024)

One of the Starlighters in Back to the Future is called a "spook" by one of Biff Tannen's friends, and although the term has meant several things through the decades, it's used problematically within the scene. The Back to the Future movies have aged surprisingly well given their age, as many of the trilogy's contemporaries often contain a handful of moments that have become a little uncomfortable to watch by today's standards. Tannen's friend choosing the word comes close to damaging the saga's legacy, but there's a good reason why it doesn't.

Most of 1985's Back to the Future is set in the 1950s. As such, American culture looks a little different. Although later points in the saga are forced to make an educated guess about what the future might be like, Back to the Future surprisingly got several things right about the real 2015. In the scenes set in the 1950s, the franchise had the benefit of genuine history books to rely on to create a more authentic-feeling world, and seeing some of the attitudes in those sequences is one of the harsh realities of rewatching Back to the Future.

"Spook" Has Historically Been Used As A Racial Slur

Back to the Future acknowledges the term being more commonly used in the 1950s

The word "spook" has several meanings. As well as being a synonym for "ghost," it is also used as a slang term for a CIA operative. Unfortunately, Biff's friend in Back to the Future isn't accusing anyone of being a government agent. In the 1950s, the word was often used as a racial slur to insult Black people. While it is still used in such a manner today, it is perhaps less commonly-heard than it has been in decades gone by. According to NPR, the word only started to be used in such a way during World War II.

Back to the Future isn't condoning the use of the term. In fact, the opposite is true. Biff's friend is an antagonist in the movie, albeit a minor one. So, having him speak so unacceptably cements the status of Biff's friend as a bad guy. Plus, using the slur also adds to the movie's historical accuracy - time-traveling DeLorean notwithstanding. Just like in the modern day, racial slurs were an unfortunate part of the lexicon in the 1950s, so it arguably would have been disingenuous to leave them out, especially with an odious character like Biff's friend.

Why Marvin Berry Responds With "Peckerwood" In Back To The Future

Marvin replies with another race-based insult

After the rest of the band emerges, Marvin replies with, "Who you calling 'spook,' peckerwood?" In short, Marvin is simply matching his adversary's insult by offering a slur in return. "Peckerwood" is used as an offensive term for white people - more accurately, poor and racist white people. In other words, Marvin was calling him white trash. According to ADL, the term "originated as an African American slang term for 'woodpecker' in the 1800s." The word started being used offensively in the early 1900s, making it older than the use of "spook" in Back to the Future.

Sources: NPR, ADL

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Back to the Future

PG

Adventure

Comedy

Family

Sci-Fi

Marty McFly, a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the maverick scientist Doc Brown. In 1955, he meets his parents when they were his age, and must step in to make sure they wind up together before he gets back to 1985.

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Director

Robert Zemeckis

Release Date

July 3, 1985

Studio(s)

Universal Pictures

Writers

Robert Zemeckis , Bob Gale

Cast

Claudia Wells , Christopher Lloyd , James Tolkan , Thomas F. Wilson , Michael J. Fox , Wendie Jo Sperber , Crispin Glover , Marc McClure , Lea Thompson

Runtime

116 minutes