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Danny Elfman returns to compose the score for ‘Justice League’ – which is great news for DC

Danny Elfman, who composed the scores for the first two Tim Burton “Batman” movies, and Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man” films, is getting back into the superhero biz. He’s signed on to compose the score for the upcoming DC release “Justice League.” (Evan Agostini / Invision/AP)
By David Betancourt Washington Post

On the heels of the success of Patty Jenkins’ “Wonder Woman,” Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment’s positive press hot streak continues with the Hollywood Reporter announcing that famed composer Danny Elfman is coming aboard to score “Justice League.”

Elfman is no stranger to DC Comics, having scored Tim Burton’s “Batman” and “Batman Returns.” He also scored Sam Raimi’s first two pre-Marvel Studios “Spider-Man” films. Those musical compositions for films featuring perhaps the two most popular superheroes of all time are considered by many fans to be some of the best the genre has to offer, alongside Hans Zimmer’s score for Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” trilogy.

Elfman’s presence for DC fills the void created by Zimmer, who announced he was done with superhero movies after 2016’s “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” Elfman will be taking over “Justice League” for the departing Junkie XL (Tom Holkenborg), who teamed up with Zimmer to score “Batman v Superman.”

In a tweet, Holkenborg admitted that it was a tough decision to step away from “Justice League.”

Zimmer’s absence could have been another public relations blow for WB/DC and their DC Comics movies as their connected cinematic universe got off to a slow start when it comes to critical acclaim. After “Batman v Superman,” David Ayer’s “Suicide Squad” was more of a music video that relied mostly on classic pop hits than symphonic sounds, but DC proved it could move on from Zimmer with the powerful and inspirational score Rupert Gregson-Williams composed for “Wonder Woman.”

Gregson-Williams’s score felt like a throwback to Elfman’s DC films. The animated end credits for “Wonder Woman,” featuring the song “Action Reaction” were one of the film’s highlights.

Elfman will be working with director/producer/writer Joss Whedon, who takes over “Justice League” in postproduction now that director Zack Snyder is taking time away from the film after a family tragedy. Elfman and Whedon have worked together before, on “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” when the composer came on to assist the score of Brian Tyler.

WB/DC will be counting on that familiarity to produce superhero magic on the screen.