John Williams's Best Movie Scores

One of the most iconic movie maestros of all time, John Willaims’s career expands to TV and movies, where he has been responsible for some of the greatest themes to hit the big screen. John Williams’s music is iconic and instantly recognizable, and his best work has expanded across multiple genres and also provides audiences with boundless imagination and an instant classic.

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By  Jake Fillery

While John Williams has been responsible for some incredible themes over the years, it’s his work on entire soundtracks to support the best movie scores that really make him a triumphant composer, whose music helps to provide films with the sounds of cinema itself.

8 E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial

Joyous Sounds for a Kid and His Alien

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E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial

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pg

Science Fiction

Adventure

Family

Fantasy

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Release Date

June 11, 1982

Runtime

115 minutes

Director

Steven Spielberg

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Writers

Melissa Mathison

Studio(s)

Universal Pictures

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E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial’s music hasn’t had as many conversations as other pieces from John Williams, but it’s equally as deserving. It’s yet another collaboration between the legendary duo of John Willaims and Steven Spielberg, and the composition provided brings forth an adventure for children to crave along with a friend alien of their own.

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial might be a more subtle touch of music than compared to other sci-fi swells of John Williams’ talent, but there is still magic and beauty in its brass instruments that swell within themes like Far From Home. The music almost sounds like the fair of a church organ to build on the friendship of a boy and his alien.

7 Schindler's List

Raw Emotion to Distill Grief Like No Other

Schindler’s List is an essential movie for anyone’s watchlist to put a light on the horrors of World War 2, and John Williams, along with Itzhak Perlman, respects the story of the movie and provides it with the sounds of tragedy. Schindler’s List is heartbreaking, and John Williams’ score provides heartbreak with a theme of its own in part to the violin solos that bolster silent percussions.

Schindler’s List allows for its music to breathe, and at times, it can almost be overwhelming with how the violins will swell as if to cry out in song for the tragedy that befalls a movie such as this from Spielberg and Williams.

6 Raiders of the Lost Ark

An Exciting Indiana Jones Adventure to Immortalise a Pulp Archeologist

The music that will follow Harrison Ford with every step comes from John Williams, which provided an archaeologist adventurer with a main theme of a lifetime which combines brass and percussion to immense fanfare. The Raiders March is one of the most recognizable themes in movie history, and with a fedora, leather jacket, and whip, the theme will make anyone crave adventure in exotic places.

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John Williams’ Raiders of the Lost Ark score bolstered the epic collaborative duo of John Williams and Steven Spielberg once more, and the elements for this movie’s themes work beautifully, like the poetic romance of Marion’s Theme that provides a personal flute that blossoms with harps and further percussion.

5 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Providing Audio Magic to Visual Magic

The iconic chimes from the celesta that bring audiences into the magic of Hogwarts come from the genius of John Williams, who provided fans of the series with sound that has become as iconic as the visuals and the magic from J.K. Rowling. John Williams’ work on Harry Potter has followed every subsequent movie, and for good reason, as it combines magical elements of music for a sound like no other.

Building from the dazzling chimes, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone amazes with bustling percussion instruments, with a mixture of trumpets, flutes, and violins, with sounds that truly elevate the movie and float audiences into the true magic of Hogwarts itself.

4 Jurassic Park

A Believable Sound for Pre-Historic Wonders

Welcome to Jurassic Park, a movie that most have fond or terrifying memories of. No matter what the opinion of the movie is for nostalgia, everyone knows the iconic theme from Jurassic Park that slowly swells into a triumph of wonder for creatures that have been extinct for millions of years.

While Jurassic Park’s visuals and main theme have immense excitement and wonder to their design, the soundtrack isn’t afraid to embrace the more horrific aspect of these pre-historic predators with tracks like The Raptor Attack, which provides an ominous hum among quick bursts of trombones for suspenseful drama. Jurassic Park is a brilliant blend of wonder and terror.

3 Superman: The Movie

The Greatest Superhero Receives the Greatest Theme

Superman: The Movie is heartfelt and beautiful, and if that doesn’t come out of Christopher Reeve’s incredible performance as Superman, it certainly comes out with John Williams’ composition. John Williams’ excellent marches, dedication to brass, and tender waves make for a beautiful set of themes for a superhero in love with both the world and Lois Lane.

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The beauty of lengthy themes like The Flying Sequence showcases a believable romance in the skies, whereas Turning Back the World harbors incredible grief and anger for a man who can turn back time. Yet, where Superman: The Movie really shines is in the Prelude and Main Title March, which brings forth a sound that is as synonymous to Superman as the blue and red costume itself, so much so that it returns for James Gunn’s Superman movie on July 11, 2025.

2 Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith

Anakin’s Fall is Tragically Told Through Williams’ Immense Choir

John Williams went above and beyond for the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, in which his work is often discussed, if not more so, than the movies themselves. While John Williams provided some of the greatest orchestral music of all time with Duel of the Fates, the better soundtrack of the Prequel Trilogy belongs to Revenge of the Sith, which features far more bolster for emotional swells in Anakin’s tragedy.

The emotional involvement in Anakin’s Dark Deeds from the loud and aggressive choir to the almost tear-jerking brass instruments just furthers how this fall of a hero becomes all the more iconic and tragic. Paired with Battle of the Heroes and Anakin vs. Obi-Wan, audiences are in for a thrill ride of sound, just as much as they are with the choreography of the fight itself.

1 Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

The Defining Sounds of Star Wars and a Villain Theme for the Ages

John Williams’ Star Wars is the undisputed king of movie scores, and it’s hard to find anyone who wouldn’t recognize the iconic Main Theme of Star Wars. Yet, a revised look at the series for its sequel, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, saw even greater themes with the likes of The Imperial March, which provided Darth Vader with his iconic and menacing theme that would follow him with every step and breath.

Not only does The Empire Strikes Back impress with its menace, but it also impresses with its blistering love. Yoda and the Force are truly captivating and magical, whereas themes like Han Solo and the Princess blossom through a daring love story of tenderness and innocence within the war.