2024 Oscars Best Original Score nominees: 2 past champs versus 3 rookies

Matthew Stewart
·3 min read
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The films in the running for the 2024 Best Original Score Oscar are “American Fiction,” “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Oppenheimer,” and “Poor Things.” Our current odds indicate that “Oppenheimer” (3/1) will take the prize, followed in order of likelihood by “Killers of the Flower Moon” (4/1), “Poor Things” (9/2), “Indiana Jones” (9/2), and “American Fiction” (9/2).

Just two of the five musicians on this roster are returning contenders, with the first-timer subgroup consisting of Jerskin Fendrix (“Poor Things”), Laura Karpman (“American Fiction”), and Robbie Robertson (“Killers of the Flower Moon”). Robertson, who died last August at age 80, is this category’s eighth posthumous nominee and first since 1977, when Bernard Herrmann earned dual bids for “Obsession” and “Taxi Driver” nearly 14 months after his death. He would be the fourth deceased composer to win an Academy Award, following Victor Young (“Around the World in 80 Days,” 1957) and “Limelight” (1973) duo Raymond Rasch and Larry Russell.

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Of the 11 women who have ever vied for this prize, 65-year-old Karpman is the oldest, outpacing Marilyn Bergman (“Yentl,” 1984) by a full decade. She would be only the fifth female champion in the category’s nine-decade history, following Bergman (who shared her win with her husband, Alan Bergman, and Michel Legrand), Rachel Portman (“Emma,” 1997), Anne Dudley (“The Full Monty,” 1998), and Hildur Guðnadóttir (“Joker,” 2020).

John Williams (“Indiana Jones”) stands out quite a bit from his current competitors in that he has a staggering 48 past scoring nominations and five wins to his name. With his five additional Best Original Song notices, he comfortably ranks as the most Oscar-nominated living person and, at 92, improves upon his status as the oldest competitive Oscar hopeful ever. This is his fourth bid for an “Indiana Jones” film, following ones for “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1982), “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” (1985), and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” (1990). He achieved his victories for “Fiddler on the Roof” (1972), “Jaws” (1976), “Star Wars” (1978), “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” (1983), and “Schindler’s List” (1994).

Looking to maintain a perfect record in this category is “Oppenheimer” composer Ludwig Göransson, who was previously honored for his “Black Panther” score in 2019. This marks his second collaboration with filmmaker Christopher Nolan after 2020’s “Tenet.” Just last year, he received his first song nomination for “Lift Me Up” from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” but was bested in that case by the writers of “Naatu Naatu” from “RRR.”

With its song nomination for “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People),” “Killers of the Flower Moon” has a shot at becoming the first film since “La La Land” (2017) to win both music Oscars. At this point, the only other movies that have accomplished that feat during the 21st century are “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” (2004) and “Slumdog Millionaire” (2009), both of which also won Best Picture.

The films that won in this category most recently are “All Quiet on the Western Front” (2023), “Dune” (2022), “Soul” (2021), and “Joker” (2020). This year’s winner will be revealed during the 96th Academy Awards ceremony, airing March 10 on ABC.

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