The nominees for the 73rd British Academy Film Awards have been announced. Those nominated for Best Original Score are: Thomas Newman for war epic 1917, a film captured in one continuous shot; Michael Giacchino for comedy Jojo Rabbit, set in the Nazi era; Hildur Guðnadóttir for psychological thriller Joker, inspired by the DC Comics character of the same name; Alexandre Desplat for Little Women, the recent adaptation of the 1868 novel by Louisa May Alcott; and John Williams for the latest instalment in the Star Wars franchise: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir’s nomination comes after her success at the Golden Globes earlier this week, when she became the first woman to win a Golden Globe for Best Original Score for Joker. This is her first BAFTA nomination, and if she were to be successful in this category, she would be the first individual woman to win the BAFTA for Best Original Score. In 2019, Lady Gaga won for her work on A Star is Born, alongside Lukas Nelson.
For John Williams, the BAFTAs are familiar territory, having previously been nominated for 15 awards in this category, seven of which he won. He has so far composed the scores for nine of the Star Wars films, but it was announced in 2018 that this would be his last with the franchise.
The other three nominated composers have also previously won BAFTAs: Michael Giacchino in 2010 for his score to the charming animated Pixar film Up; Thomas Newman for films including American Beauty, WALL-E and Skyfall; and Alexandre Desplat for a raft of films such as The King’s Speech, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Shape of Water and Isle of Dogs.
The winners of the 2020 British Academy Film Awards will be announced in a ceremony on 2 February 2020.
