Five-time Academy Award winner John Williams isn’t slowing down any time soon, if recent news about his upcoming projects is any indication.
During an event where Williams was honored by the American Film Institute, the composer confirmed that he’d very much like to score the upcoming Star Wars: Episode VIII after doing the same for last year’s Oscar-nominated Episode VII: The Force Awakens. As if that wasn’t enough to keep him busy, it was also confirmed that he’d compose the score for the next, still-untitled Indiana Jones movie.
“If I can do it, I certainly will,” Williams said to Variety of his desire to compose the score for director Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: Episode VIII. “I told [franchise producer] Kathy Kennedy I’m happy to do it, but the real reason is, I didn’t want anybody else writing music for Daisy Ridley.”
Williams, who has been nominated 50 times for an Academy Award since his first nomination in 1968 for Valley of the Dolls, won his third Academy Award in 1978 for the original Star Wars. He also won Oscars for his work on Fiddler on the Roof, Jaws, E.T. the Extraterrestrial, and Schindler’s List. He received one of his 50 nominations in 1982 for composing the score for the first Indiana Jones movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark.
During the same American Film Institute event, Indiana Jones franchise director Steve Spielberg — a three-time Oscar winner himself — confirmed to Access Hollywood that Williams will score the next installment of that franchise, too.
Breaking! At the @AmericanFilm Tribute, #StevenSpielberg confirmed that #JohnWilliams will score #IndianaJones 5! pic.twitter.com/2RKGsbeonj
— Scott Mantz 🖖 (@MovieMantz) June 10, 2016
The fifth Indiana Jones movie will reteam franchise star Harrison Ford with Spielberg for a film based on a script penned by David Koepp. That film is currently scheduled to hit theaters July 19, 2019
Johnson’s Star Wars: Episode VIII will arrive in theaters December 15, 2017.
