In a move that should excite old school fans of the Caped Crusader, Justice League composer Danny Elfman has confirmed that he’s bringing back the classic theme music he originally created for 1989’s Batman. Best known for his collaborations with director Tim Burton, Elfman has become a Hollywood legend in his own right during his 40+ years in the industry. Amongst a host of other honors, he won a Grammy for his work on the Burton-directed Batman, the first big-budget blockbuster of his career. The award was well earned, of course, and almost three decades later, his score is still considered by many to be the definitive theme music of the Dark Knight. (To be fair, the fact that Batman: The Animated Series borrowed heavily from it for its opening sequence certainly didn’t hurt.)
Elfman originally signed on to score Justice League back in June, when he was hired to replace Junkie XL on the project in the aftermath of Joss Whedon taking over post-production directorial duties for Zack Snyder. Just how much of an influence Whedon has had over this new look DCEU film has been hotly debated, though the addition of Elfman was warmly received by most fans. Thankfully, if the composer’s latest comments are anything to go by, it looks like the right decision was made.
Speaking with Reporte Indigo, Elfman was asked if fans should expect to hear a new theme accompanying the Dark Knight, or if he’d be incorporating Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL’s work from Batman v Superman. The interviewer received a pretty clear answer:
Amusingly, Elfman seems a bit taken aback by the idea that he would employ any other theme for the Caped Crusader, laughingly replying, “you will hear Batman’s theme for Batman”. He does take a beat to compliment Hans Zimmer (who also composed the score for the Dark Knight trilogy), as to not completely dismiss his work, before confidently stating that “Batman has only had one theme.” Whether or not Elfman is simply stating that other composers never established a true theme for the character in technical terms, he clearly views his own work to be the definitive Bat-tune. To be honest, it’s hard to argue with him.
Here we go - Danny Elfman confirming he will NOT be using Zimmer/Junkie’s Batman material/theme in #JusticeLeague https://t.co/6LFpg1bf1y pic.twitter.com/VEkHUJhQaF
— Anton Volkov (@antovolk) October 31, 2017
With Warner Bros.’ promotional campaign for the film well underway, the news fittingly comes in the midst of ‘Batman week’, a seven day stretch designed to celebrate all things Dark Knight as well as tease new information about the latest iteration of Gotham’s greatest hero. Interestingly enough, it also comes less than a day after the release of a new Justice League promo in which Ben Affleck declared that fans were set to see “the evolution of a new Batman.” Perhaps this version won’t be quite as groundbreaking as all that, but seriously, Danny Elfman’s theme song is as good as it gets. This is a big win across the board, in our eyes.
Next: Justice League Soundtrack Includes Superman: The Movie Easter Egg
Source: Reporte Indigo
