Claudia Wells

Claudia Wells (born July 5, 1966) is an American actress, best known for playing Jennifer Parker in the 1985 film Back to the Future.

Early life Wells was born on July 5, 1966 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Her family moved to the San Francisco Bay area when she was seven weeks old. Wells moved to Los Angeles at the age of 14, later graduating from Beverly Hills High School. She has one brother and a sister named Jennifer.

Career Wells appeared in ten operas between ages eight and twelve. She began acting in TV shows in the late 1970s.

Wells played Jennifer Parker, Marty McFly's girlfriend, in the 1985 film Back to the Future. She almost did not end up in the first film of the successful franchise. According to Wells, she had been cast, but a pilot she had done for ABC had been picked up, and she was contractually forced to drop out of Back to the Future. During that time, Eric Stoltz had been shooting for five weeks in the role of Marty McFly. The producers halted filming and replaced Stoltz with Michael J. Fox. By then, Wells's pilot had been finished and she was recast as Jennifer, now shooting alongside Fox, having never filmed a frame with Stoltz.

Also in 1985, Wells co-starred in "Stop the Madness", an anti-drug music video sponsored by the Reagan administration, featuring several famous musicians, actors and athletes. In 1986, she appeared in the TV movie Babies Having Babies, and the short-lived series Fast Times, a TV adaptation of the 1982 film Fast Times at Ridgemont High (Wells played Linda Barrett, portrayed by Phoebe Cates in the film). On December 19, 1991, Wells founded a Studio City, Los Angeles-based clothing store, Armani Wells, which she still owns and manages as of 2024.

After her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, Wells put her career on hold for family reasons, and told the studio she would not be available to reprise her Back to the Future role for the two sequels. Actress Elisabeth Shue replaced her. Her mother subsequently died in October 1994.

She did not appear again on-screen until the 1996 independent film, Still Waters Burn (released on DVD February 12, 2008).

Return to acting After a lengthy absence, Wells returned to acting in 2011 with a small role in the independent science-fiction film, Alien Armageddon.

The same year, Wells reprised her role from Back to the Future, 26 years after her last appearance in the series; she provided the voice of Jennifer Parker for Back to the Future: The Game. In 2012, Wells announced that her next project would be a horror film titled Room & Board.

Personal life When she was 15, she became a born-again Christian and her faith helped her get through her mother's cancer diagnosis and death.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes 1985 Back to the Future Jennifer Parker 2008 Still Waters Burn Laura Harper 2011 Alien Armageddon Eileen Daly 2013 You Are Not Alone Cristina's Mom Short film 2013 Max Mom Short film 2014 Starship: Rising Captain Savage 2015 EP/Executive Protection Pam Travis 2015 Back in Time Herself Back to the Future documentary 2015 Back to the 2015 Future Jennifer Parker Short film 2018 Groove Street Julie 2018 System Failure Mrs Henderson Short film 2019 Vitals Margaret Parks

Television Year Title Role Notes 1979 Family Denise / Barbara Collins 2 episodes 1981 Rise and Shine Patsy D'Allisandro 1 episode 1981 Strike Force Patty Episode: "Magic Man" 1982 Herbie, the Love Bug Julie MacLane 5 episodes 1982 Lovers and Other Strangers Mary Claire Delvecchio Television film 1984 Fame Marya Episode: "Appearances" 1984 Anatomy of an Illness Sarakit Television film 1984–1985 Off the Rack Shannon Halloran 7 episodes 1984–1986 CBS Schoolbreak Special Lisa / Wendy 2 episodes 1985 Trapper John, M.D. Candy Episode: "Long Ago and Far Away" 1985 Simon & Simon Phoebe Glass Episode: "Slither" 1985 Able to Do 1986 Fast Times Linda Barrett 7 episodes 1986 Brothers Sarah Episode: "Joe Leaves This Old World Behind" 2011 The Mentalist Chief Marnie Green Episode: "Where in the World is Carmine O'Brien?" 2014 Zero Impact Home Future Petal Short series 2015 The Comeback Kids Herself Episode: "Re-United and It Feels So Good"

Video games Year Title Role Notes 2011 Back to the Future: The Game Jennifer Parker Episode 3: "Citizen Brown"Episode 4: "Double Visions"