Legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg is getting a bit more personal with his next project, helping to create a feature-length documentary on the life of long-time friend and fellow Hollywood icon John Williams. As household names on the directing and composing sides, respectively, Spielberg and Williams are pretty much the perfect match for each other, both for this project and the countless others they’ve collaborated on.
Fresh off the success ofSpielberg’s daunting recent hitThe Fabelmans, the seasoned director and producer has now set his sights on the life and career of Williams. Known by legions of moviegoers for his timeless soundtracks to films like the mainlineStar Warsmovies and Spielberg’s ownIndiana Jones(including theupcoming sequelIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny), Williams is easily one of the most recognizable names in Hollywood. So now, after the 90-year-old composer recentlyreturned toStar Warsto work onObi-Wan Kenobifor Disney+, the world is finally ready for the whole story.
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According toThe Hollywood Reporter, while not directing Williams' unnamed documentary, Spielberg is one of several producers spearheading the project. They include Ron Howard and Meredith Kaulfers, the latter of whom also produced Lawrence Kasdan’s 2022 ILM documentaryLight & Magic. Meanwhile, the director’s chair will be filled by French-American filmmaker Laurent Bouzereau, who has collaborated with Spielberg on a number of documentaries in the past.
Even if it wasn’t forWilliams' iconic work onStar Wars, he would still have a mountain of accomplishments propping up his legendary status. Some argue that his work onJurassic Parkis his true greatest achievement. Others stand by his memorableSupermanandJawsthemes that still remain in the cultural lexicon to this day, decades after they were originally written. All it takes is humming a bar or two from any of his most treasured tracks and a whole room of people will instantly find themselves singing along, possibly without realizing it. Not bad for an almost entirely instrumental catalog of music.
Spielberg and Williams have worked together for 50 years at this point, and not just in the more popular projects. Even some ofSpielberg’s more underappreciated moviesincluded music from the renowned composer. FromJawsandClose Encounters of the Third Kindin the 70s all the way to 2021’sWest Side Story(which Williams obviously didn’t score, but did serve on as a musical consultant), they’ve been thick as melodically satisfying thieves for half a century. So while Spielberg isn’t the director, his involvement in the documentary would be a given no matter who made it.
The only downside here would be the idea of certain fans' favorite Williams soundtracks not getting a substantial focus in the feature. Sure,Star WarsandIndiana Joneswill definitely feature prominently, as willeveryone’s favorite alienE.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. But fans ofHookandMemoirs Of A Geishamight have to set aside their biases for a bit. Hard to cram a lifetime’s worth of bangers into a single feature, after all. Though maybe James Gunn could figure out a way.
