Nike Goes Back to the Future With Self-Tying Sneakers

(Roger Kisby/Getty Images)

"Back to the Future Part II" made some whimsical predictions for what 2015 would bring, including flying cars and hoverboards.

But Tinker Hatfield, a shoe designer at Nike, is looking to turn some of that whimsy into reality, saying that Marty McFly's self-tying sneakers are on the horizon.

Hatfield spoke at a recent event at the Jordan Brand's Flight Lab in New Orleans in preparation for the NBA All-Star game. The website Sole Collector reported that when an attendee asked about the futuristic sneakers, Hatfield replied, "Are we gonna see power laces in 2015? To that, I say YES!"

This isn't the first time Nike tried to replicate the famous on-screen sneakers. In 2011, the shoe company released Nike Mag Air. It didn't have self-tightening laces, but the shoes looked like they were taken from the movie prop room. Nike made only 1,500 pairs and auctioned them off, with all the proceeds going to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's disease research.

Hatfield did not specify whether they would be bringing back the Nike Mag Air or putting the power laces in different model shoe. Nike declined to comment further on the matter.