James Stewart Tolkan is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Mr. Strickland in Back to the Future (1985) and Back to the Future Part II (1989), and as Marshal Strickland in Back to the Future Part III (1990). Other memorable film roles include Love and Death (1975), Top Gun (1986), Masters of the Universe (1987) and Dick Tracy (1990).

Back to the Future Part II is a 1989 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis from a screenplay by Bob Gale; both wrote the story. It is the sequel to the 1985 film Back to the Future and the second installment in the Back to the Future franchise. The film stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, and Thomas F. Wilson with Elisabeth Shue, and Jeffrey Weissman in supporting roles. It follows Marty McFly (Fox) and his friend Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown (Lloyd) as they travel from 1985 to 2015 to prevent Marty's son from sabotaging the McFly family's future. When their arch-nemesis Biff Tannen (Wilson) steals Doc's DeLorean time machine and uses it to alter history for his benefit, the duo must return to 1955 to restore the timeline.