Hans Zimmer explains why he turned down Marvel
Acclaimed composer said he had already completed ‘the trifecta’
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Your support makes all the difference.Hans Zimmer has explained why he has not written the score for any films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, despite enquiries from franchise boss Kevin Feige.
The German 67-year-old ranks among the most acclaimed living film composers thanks to his iconic scores for Pirates of the Caribbean, Dune, and The Lion King, among others.
Zimmer previously stated that he had “retired” from composing scores for superhero films, having previously written music for 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Wonder Woman 1984, and X-Men: Dark Phoenix.
He elaborated on his position during an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast this week.
“Are you yourself kind of superheroed out? I’m kind of surprised the official MCU has never come calling or if they have, you’ve said no?” asked podcast host Josh Horowitz.
“They have, and it was always – timing wasn’t great,” Zimmer responded. “And really, quite honestly, I’m looking for other things right now.
“Look, I’ve done the trifecta. I’ve done Batman, Superman, Spider-Man and Wonder Woman! I mean, what do you want me to do? Some of the minor characters? Probably, yes.”
“This is Hans Zimmer, folks. Come on!” Horowitz added.
Zimmer’s work on the Dark Knight trilogy – a series of Batman adaptations from Oppenheimer director Nolan – drew particular acclaim from fans, and won him a Grammy award in 2009.
Zimmer then added: “That was very arrogant of me to say that but actually Kevin Feige said that to me: ‘Hans, what are you complaining about?’”
In September, it was announced that Zimmer had signed on to compose the score for a new BBC adaptation of the classic novel Lord of the Flies.
The 1954 novel by William Golding is being used as the basis of a TV series for the first time.
Zimmer won the Academy Award for Best Original Score for The Lion King in 1994, winning again for the sci-fi epic Dune in 2021. He has been nominated a further 10 times.
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