John Williams, who had previously stated that he was set to retire, has rowed back on those comments saying that he’ll never turn down the chance to work on a Steven Spielberg movie. Williams, who is rightly regarded as one of the best movie score composers of all time, is a frequent collaborator of Spielberg’s and has helped to create some truly iconic cinema scores over many decades.
Whether it was with the Indiana Jones movies, the Star Wars movies, Jaws, or the Harry Potter movies, Williams has managed to elevate films with his talent. However, Williams had previously said that his score for the upcoming Indiana Jones 5 would be his very last, and that it would mark the start of his retirement.
Now, the multi-Oscar winning Williams has cancelled his retirement. At an event in the Writers Guild Theater (via Variety) in which Williams was interviewed alongside Spielberg, the composer the statement that he would be open to continue working with Spielberg on future movies.
He was asked if he would really be retiring after Indiana Jones 5, to which he responded “Well, Steven [Spielberg] is a lot of things. He’s a director, he’s a producer, he’s a studio head, he’s a writer, he’s a philanthropist, he’s an educator. One thing he isn’t is a man you can say no to.”
He continued, saying that because Spielberg’s own father worked until he was 100 “this is what he expects from me”. Spielberg was able to respond there and then appearing both pleased, and very surprised by Williams’ response to the question. He commented “You never told me that before today… I gotta get working, to find out what the hell I’m doing next.”
Hopefully, Williams’ statement means that we get many more years of work, and many more scores from the man. To keep up with all things cinema, check out our guide to every major new movie in 2023.