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Legendary Composer John Williams Dismisses Film Music as "Ephemeral" and "Fragmentary"
26 Aug
Summary
- 93-year-old composer John Williams admits he's not a fan of film music
- Williams says film music is "ephemeral" and "fragmentary," unlike concert music
- Despite 54 Oscar nominations, Williams believes film music doesn't belong in the concert hall
In a candid interview published on August 24, 2025, legendary composer John Williams, who is 93 years old, made a surprising admission: he is not a fan of film music. Despite his impressive career, which includes 54 Oscar nominations and 5 wins, Williams believes that film music is "ephemeral" and "fragmentary," unlike the "precious great" concert music he prefers.
Williams explained that while film music can be good in short bursts, he doesn't think it deserves the same status as classical music in the concert hall. He stated, "Just the idea that film music has the same place in the concert hall as the best music in the canon is a mistaken notion, I think." The composer, who is the most-nominated living person and second-most nominated person of all time, added that he "never liked film music very much."
Biographer Tim Greiving, whose book on Williams will be released this fall, spoke of the composer's disdain for his own work, saying, "His comments are sort of shocking, and they are not false modesty. He is genuinely self-deprecating and deprecating of 'film music' in general." However, Greiving noted that Williams took his film composing work "as seriously as anyone in history ever has."
