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John Murphy Talks Composing "Superman" and Reimagining John Williams' Iconic Theme
Posted on August 07, 2025 by Neil Cole
In a recent interview with the Motion Picture Association, acclaimed composer John Murphy - whose work includes "28 Days Later," "Sunshine," and "The Suicide Squad" - shared insight into his bold, inventive approach to scoring Director James Gunn's "Superman". Working alongside co-composer David Fleming, Murphy set out to balance reverence for John Williams' legendary 1978 Superman March with a fresh, contemporary musical vision for the Man of Steel's latest big-screen adventure.
Murphy began composing themes before filming even began, building a sonic foundation rooted in the story rather than the visuals. "The story is everything," he explained. "We're not scoring to picture. We're scoring a story. That's what we do." Gunn embraced this process, often playing Murphy's early compositions on set to inspire performance and mood.
One of Murphy's most striking creative decisions was to reinterpret Williams' orchestral march on electric guitar. "There was no grand idea of, oh, wouldn't it be awesome to put this iconic theme on guitar," Murphy recalled. "I was just playing around with it... Am I going to go to Composer Hell here for daring to put such a beautiful, iconic theme on guitar?" That playful experiment quickly evolved into a defining moment, becoming the very first sound audiences heard in the film's debut trailer - a Hendrix-tinged nod to tradition with an unmistakably modern bite.
Beyond the title theme, Murphy crafted new musical identities for the film's characters. His intimate love theme for Superman and Lois Lane began as a minimal, filtered guitar melody, inspired by the atmospheric style of Sigur Rós and Mogwai, before being enriched with Fleming's lush orchestral arrangements. For Lex Luthor, Murphy traded elegance for grit, creating a raw, distorted guitar motif co-written with his daughter, Molly Murphy, to convey the villain's unpredictable menace.
Fleming's orchestrations added additional depth and texture to Murphy's work, particularly in tracks like "Metropolis", where warm acoustic guitar blends seamlessly with soaring strings to embody Superman's bond with his city. Together, the composers experimented with orchestral and synthetic elements, pushing the score into fresh sonic territory while keeping it emotionally grounded.
Throughout the process, Murphy tested the flexibility of Williams' motif. "I did everything I could to kind of destroy that motif," he admitted. "No matter what I did to it... it was still the Superman theme. My God, it's the most bulletproof motif ever written. Genius in simplicity."
The "Superman: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" - featuring 33 tracks of new material alongside reimagined Williams themes - is available now from WaterTower Music. Released July 4, 2025, the album offers a fresh yet faithful musical journey for fans of the Man of Steel.
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