James Gunn set to make use of John Williams’ Superman theme once more

Having been hit with a string of legacies over the previous few years, it is fairly clear that as an viewers, nostalgia is our kryptonite. Then once more, a return to a franchise can silence the naysayers the second they hear a number of notes of a well-known rating that may make us sit up in our seats and our chests involuntarily swell. That is what many followers undoubtedly felt after they appeared on the beautiful new poster for “Superman” by James Gunn (a film that must really work)they captured the mild breeze of John Williams’ inimitable theme for 1978’s “Superman: The Film.” “Superman” (so far as we all know) is not a legacy, however that would not matter in any respect if he nonetheless used Williams’ music.

Given the quantity of fireside emojis and reward garnered through the unveiling of the one-sheet, persons are readily expressing their pleasure that the beloved composer’s work is being reapplied to this all-new iteration of the DC poster . Others, nevertheless, weren’t so joyful. On a user wrote“The truth that they used the John Williams theme from the Christopher Reeves movies already confirmed to me that this movie could be lifeless on arrival.” Others expressed their hope the theme is reused just for the trailer; as another user said it“Can we please take away John Williams’ ‘Superman’ theme.”

However why? What unwritten rule exists {that a} reboot of a well-known hero should be accompanied by a totally new theme track? Certain, it may ship us on a musical journey down reminiscence lane, however it’s a danger franchises should not be afraid to take. Superman should not should pay attention to completely new music each time a brand new actor performs him, particularly when a sure undercover agent with a license to kill hasn’t modified his personal theme track since 1962.

Simply as a number of blasts of the trumpet from John Williams’ “Superman: The Film” theme track instantly provides chills, so does listening to the horn part blast a little bit of John Barry and Monty Norman’s iconic theme for James Bond . In a musical microcosm, a property reusing the identical theme track again and again is the type of factor followers hate to see. This solely makes it all of the extra spectacular that the James Bond franchise has managed to do exactly that for over 60 years now.

Earlier than Daniel Craig’s stint as a undercover agent, the connections between every Bond movie have been very skinny. James Bond himself has been played by various actorssimilar to all of the Q’s, Mrs’s and Moneypenny’s. Even Blofeld, Bond’s longtime nemesis within the franchise, has been performed by numerous actors starting from Donald Pleasance to Telly Savalas, and but audiences have by no means been shaken (or moved) by listening to the basic Bond theme each time he checks on James. If the enduring member of Her Majesty’s Secret Service will get a move, there isn’t any purpose why The Final Son of Krypton should not both.

Taking into consideration the composer engaged on Gunn’s “Superman,” it is completely doable that Williams’ basic rating will really be integrated into the movie. Gunn announced earlier this yr that his “The Suicide Squad” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” collaborator John Murphy will deal with Man of Tomorrow’s music in his movie. As a composer who doesn’t play by the rules, Murphy may very properly incorporate a few of Williams’ work in any method he sees match. It will additionally set a precedent for different franchise reboots to observe go well with and make one of these method extra frequent sooner or later.

Pay attention. Tom Holland’s wall crawler launched right into a grander model of the ’60s “Spider-Man” cartoon theme. “Ms. Marvel” set the stage for the X-Men’s debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe when he used the 90s theme from “X-Males: The Animated Collection”. They weren’t the primary to do one thing like this they usually definitely will not be the final, just because these theme songs all completely slap the face. In reality, I would wager my wager that each time Max’s “Harry Potter” collection comes out, Williams’ work from the “Harry Potter” movies can even be integrated so as to add a bit of additional magic to that reboot. That is to not say that new composers should not dare so as to add their very own contribution to any iteration of a franchise they assist carry to life, however simply as some characters and their worlds are revisited, so ought to likewise for the music that helped begin a property’s journey to the display within the first place.

As for “Superman,” the usage of Williams’ music ought to, together with the beautiful shade palette paying homage to Richard Donner’s unique movie poster, tempt followers into pondering that Gunn has a winner on his arms right here – one which retains the reminiscence of among the finest and most beloved iterations of the Man of Metal near its chest. Very similar to Kal-El himself, Williams’ Superman theme is invulnerable, so do not hassle making an attempt to repair what was by no means damaged.

“Superman” hits theaters on July 11, 2025.