Which Other Composers Should Score A Star Wars Project?
Since no one has discovered a formula for immortality, we, as mere mortals, have to accept that life has an expiration date. When famous people age, retire and pass on, we are left to ask, “who will replace them?” While there isn’t a right or wrong answer, we can only think about who could come close to the original. For example, John Williams, the composer behind the Star Wars Skywalker Saga, is 90 years old. He will never be replaced, as he has left a historical musical mark on cinema, not only through Star Wars but also Harry Potter, Superman, Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and E.T., to name a few. While so many composers could come close, here is a short list of a few that could step in when the time comes.
John Williams
Who better to score the next Star Wars film than the man who scored the rest? John Williams is synonymous with the sound of Star Wars; you can’t imagine one without the other. Composing music that commands the immediate attention of whoever is listening, Williams created sounds that became the identities of characters and scenes throughout the series. While he recently announced that Indiana Jones 5 will be his last film, he would still create an incredible score.
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Williams was convinced by Obi-Wan director Deborah Chow to come back to the world of Star Wars because he never was able to write a proper theme for Obi-Wan. Even if Willams only kept to the main Skywalker Saga story, his signature can still be felt through other titles like Solo (Ramin Djawadi) and The Mandolorian (Ludwig Göransson).
Howard Shore
Howard Shore comes with a loaded arsenal of previous large-scale works. Having scored The Lord of The Rings and Hobbit trilogies, Shore is very well-versed in creating blockbuster soundtracks. He also has numerous Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and Grammy awards to back up his work. Before scoring LOTR, she had numerous collaborations with David Cronenberg, including The Brood and The Fly. He also did the score for The Silence of the Lambs. While his musical style is pretty traditional, it would fit the all-encompassing world that is Star Wars.
Hildur Guðnadóttir
Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir has accomplished quite a lot in her relatively short musical career. Initially starting with solo cello and small-scale compositions, Guðnadóttir began composing for larger films and television series, such as Sicario: Day of the Soledad, Chernobyl, and Joker. For Joker, she won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, and two Grammy awards, one for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media and Best Arrangement for “Bathroom Dance,” found below. Needless to say, Guðnadóttir has the background to score a film series such as Star Wars.
Ramin Djawadi
Ramin Djawadi’s experience goes deeper than just Game of Thrones. Just after graduating college, he worked with Hans Zimmer and Klaus Badelt. In 2004, Djawadi worked with RZA to score Blade: Trinity, and in 2005 once again worked with Zimmer for Batman Begins. He also did the orchestral score for the first Iron Man movie. In 2011, he was selected to score Game of Thrones thanks to his suspense-building style. His most recent efforts include Marvel’s Eternals and the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon. The experience of multi-season shows and several big-budget movies give him the credentials many producers look for when selecting a composer.
Ludwig Göransson
Swedish composer Ludwig Göransson is a relative newcomer in the world of film composition. His first work, Fruitvale Station, was in collaboration with director Ryan Coogler. They collaborated on two more films, including Creed and Black Panther, the latter of which earned him his first Academy Award. Since 2019, he has done the score for The Mandalorian after being recommended to Jon Favreau by Coogler, the Russo brothers, and Donald Glover. In 2021, he also did the score for The Book of Boba Fett. In addition, his familiarity with the Star Wars franchise makes him a solid choice for another project.
Alan Silvestri
Alan Silvestri is an American composer who has created works for nearly all film genres. He first worked with Robert Zemeckis for Romancing the Stone. He would score the remainder of Zemeckis’s films, including the Back to the Future trilogy, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Forrest Gump, and The Polar Express. Silvestri has also done the score for numerous MCU movies, including Captain America: The First Avenger, Avengers, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame. His Avengers theme is used as the base for several other Marvel composers, making him the closest option for John Williams.
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Source(s): Grammy Awards; NME; IMDb; AlanSilvestri.com; CNN; Consequence of Film; ClassicFM