John Williams beats his own Oscars nomination record

Legendary composer John Williams beat his own record on Tuesday as the most Oscar-nominated person alive for his contribution to Steven Spielberg’s film, ‘The Fabelmans’. The musical icon is up for his 53rd Oscar nomination at this year’s 95th Academy Awards.

As one of the most acclaimed composers of all time, the 90-year-old has won five Oscars and is behind only Walt Disney, deceased, who has 59 Academy Award nominations and 22 wins. So far, Williams has won five Academy Awards.

“I’m very grateful to the Academy for their kind recognition, and I’m enormously grateful to Steven Spielberg for offering me the opportunity to compose the score for this very special and personal film,” Williams said in a statement after receiving the nomination.

Spielberg on working with Williams

Spielberg’s latest film ‘The Fabelmans’, is a semi-autobiographical picture about a young filmmaker and was nominated for seven Oscars — but it wasn’t the first time the famous filmmaker worked with John Williams.

The two met in 1972 for lunch and never looked back. They have collaborated together ever since.

In a 2012 interview Williams and Spielberg did with The Times, the composer revealed that they have a shorthand way of communicating and shared vision for their projects.

“We discuss where to put the music and what its function will be in the scenes,” Williams explained. “I’ll play Steven a few little half-developed themes on the piano.

“He’s never said to me, ‘I don’t like that’ or ‘That’s not good.’ He offers just by his body language and his eyes and his face a sense of encouragement in this direction or that direction.”

The director agreed and added that they share a passion for grand symphony orchestra music:

“Johnny and I have been very Luddite about including full orchestras and full choirs in most of our films,” added Spielberg. “I love orchestras. I never leave the scoring sessions. It’s my vacation from the movie I just made.”

John Williams’ Oscar wins

John Williams is known for his smooth, symphonic style, with expertise in synthesizers, concert composing, and conducting. Some of Williams’ other work includes ‘Harry Potter’, ‘Superman’, ‘Indiana Jones,’, ‘Jurassic Park’, and ‘Saving Private Ryan’.

After the release of ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ in 2023, the iconic music composer announced his retirement from the music industry because he wants to move his focus away from movies and spend more time composing orchestras and symphonies — but he later retracted that, as he continues to compose music for movies.