Spielberg replaces John Williams for “Bridge of Spies”

Having big time collaborators on board a project are almost always a sure fire way to make sure a filmmaker's cinematic vision makes it to the big screen intact. Just ask Steven Spielberg, who's two biggest collaborators, Tom Hanks and John Williams, were all set to join him on his latest film – the formerly untitled Cold War drama, now entitled “Bridge Of Spies”. At least, that's how it was supposed to work out, until personal reasons forced John Williams to bow out of musical component of the October release. Never fear, for as Maestro Williams couldn't come out to play this time around, Academy Award winner Thomas Newman was more than glad to jump in as a substitute. 

In an official press release from Dreamworks Pictures and Fox 2000, “Bridge Of Spies” was named as the first film since “The Color Purple” not to feature Williams' musical accompaniment. While it is a bummer that the typical Williams/Spielberg partnership was put on an unplanned hiatus for the production of “Bridge Of Spies”, it is equally an interesting opportunity to see a journeyman composer like Thomas Newman taking the reins this time around. After all, he was hand-picked by “Skyfall” director Sam Mendes to fill the franchise shoes that David Arnold had worn since “Tomorrow Never Dies”, and that experiment yielded one of the best Bond scores in the series' history. 

As for Williams, it most certainly won't be a total year off for him and his composer's pen, as he's either already at work or soon to be at work on the music for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”. In fact, the unexpected break from his efforts with Spielberg is probably a good thing as it'll help him avoid a repeat of his busy 2002 schedule. That was the year that not only saw “Star Wars: Episode II – Attack Of The Clones” on his plate, but also had him bringing musical life to “Minority Report”, “Catch Me If You Can”, and “Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets” in the same year. 

“Bridge Of Spies” will hit theatres on October 16.

Source: Cinemablend