2025 Oscars Best Original Score Predictions

Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any individual contender. As other formal (and informal) polls suggest, competitions are fluid and subject to change based on buzz and events. Predictions are updated every Thursday.

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2025 Oscars Predictions:
Best Original Score

Weekly Commentary (Updated Sept. 26, 2024): Could the Music Branch check off Hans Zimmer’s name twice this year?

With two high-profile projects — Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part Two” and Steve McQueen’s “Blitz” — the revered cinematic composer Zimmer could find himself in the running for two nominations this awards season. Surprisingly, double mentions in the music category aren’t as rare as you might think. Legendary composers such as Max Steiner, Victor Young, Alfred Newman, and John Williams have accomplished this feat on multiple occasions (Williams himself has done it an astounding nine times). The last composer to receive two score noms in the same year was Alexandre Desplat in 2014 for “The Imitation Game” and his Oscar-winning work on “The Grand Budapest Hotel.”

Zimmer’s body of work is nothing short of extraordinary. As one of the most prolific composers in cinema today, the German maestro has earned widespread respect and critical acclaim. With two Academy Awards for “The Lion King” (1994) and “Dune” (2021), along with four Grammys and six Emmy nominations, Zimmer is already a decorated figure. However, the competition this year promises to be fierce.

Several highly regarded composers who have yet to win an Oscar are vying for attention, including Alberto Iglesias (“The Room Next Door”) and Kris Bowers (“The Wild Robot”). They’ll be competing alongside past winners like Jon Batiste (“Saturday Night”) and a possible double act from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, who could receive nods for both “Challengers” and “Queer.” Also in the mix is Harry Gregson-Williams, a composer with an impressive résumé that includes films like “The Rock” (1996), “Shrek” (2001), and “The Martian” (2015), but who has never received an Oscar nomination. This year, he’s scoring the highly anticipated “Gladiator II.” Not to be overlooked is Tamar-kali, a long-ignored talent whose powerful work on “Mudbound” (2017) should have garnered more attention. She has another shot at recognition with the crowd-pleasing “The Fire Inside.”

There are also some lesser-known but equally formidable contenders, such as Daniel Blumberg (“The Brutalist”), Clément Ducol and Camille (“Emilia Pérez”), and Andrea Datzman (“Inside Out 2”).

There will be more to watch as the circuit unfolds.

Read: All Primetime Emmy predictions in every category on Variety’s Awards Circuit.

The 97th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 2. The full rankings are below. All movie listings, titles, distributors, and credited producers are not final and are subject to change.

** denotes the film is not yet dated or can open in 2025.

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