Steven Spielberg surely had no idea that one well-meaning remark about John Williams to George Lucas would've paved the way for one of the greatest soundtracks in cinematic history. But the world is a better place for it.
Spielberg and Williams' long-lived collaboration began in 1974, when the latter worked on The Sugarland Express. Before that, Williams had worked with directors like Frank Sinatra, Irwin Allen, and Don Siegel. In 2023, Spielberg told Deadline that Williams' work on Mark Rydell's The Reivers made him seek the music composer out for his theatrical feature debut.
A year later, the two worked together on Spielberg's classic horror thriller, Jaws, for which Williams won an Oscar. As the 1975 movie turned 50 this month, let's revisit how it led to Williams working with Lucas.
We may have Steven Spielberg to thank for the Star Wars soundtrack
Lucas was gearing up for A New Hope, then known as just Star Wars, around the same time his close friend Spielberg was working on the post-production of Jaws in 1975. The movie itself was a huge risk on its own, especially with Lucas having invested a significant amount of his own fortune, and the future of the series hinged upon the film's success. Finding the right music composer was critical.
Having worked with Williams twice by then, Spielberg thought of making a suggestion to Lucas. "Steven said, 'I worked with this guy and he's great!'" Lucas recalled in The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film by J. W. Rinzler.
That was enough for Lucas to put his faith on Williams. Spielberg even arranged for the two to meet, and the rest was history.
"In doing a score for Jaws, composer John Williams has outdone himself," Spielberg said in a note, according to The Legacy of John Williams website. "Right up there with Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss and 7,000 pounds of hungry shark, John Williams’ musical vision plays a leading role."
Williams went on to win an Oscar for his original score in A New Hope as well. From the ever iconic "The Imperial March" to the melancholic "Across the Stars" to the intense "Duel of the Fates," Williams' music has been an inseparable part of the story that has elevated the entire saga, and not just in the Star Wars movies he worked on.
There are many moments in games and TV shows, like when the Force theme rings out during Kanan's Jedi reveal in Star Wars Rebels or the Andor finale credits give a nod to the Main Theme, that become goosebump-worthy, thanks to Williams' score.