The relationship between Jon Williams and Steven Spielberg has been, in Spielberg’s words, an ideal marriage (Ayllon, 2025). Steven Spielberg’s films have offered cinematic spectacle and images so iconic that few can compare; the flying bicycles in E.T., the first time a dinosaur is shown in Jurassic Park, the shark fin surfacing in Jaws, to name a few. However, when stripped of John Williams’ legendary compositions, they fall short of the emotional impact. When watching these scenes without music, you are reminded of the impact of music on your emotional response. Music can be utilised to evoke feelings of grandeur, foreboding or mystery that a scene itself may not be able to do alone. It is undeniable that music has a huge impact on a scene, but it begs the questions: how do these moments come to be, how does a director choose his composer, and what impact does music have on the storytelling? In this essay, I will explore how John Williams and Steven Spielberg collaborate, and how the director’s vision and the composer’s creativity intersect.

Steven Spielberg said, ‘I depend on John more than I depend on anybody to rewrite my movies musically and put them a rung higher than I could ever reach’ (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 2023). This quote alone provides incredible insight into the relationship in this pairing. It is clear to see how much trust there is between the duo. Due to the role of the director being collaborative, it is therefore Spielberg’s job to share the vision, and it is the composer’s job to help realise it. From another interview, Spielberg says he can bring the audience to the brink of tears, but Johnny makes the tears flow (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 2023). The music feels intrinsically linked to the scene; it punctuates it and helps guide our emotions. Calling Williams a ‘rewrite artist’ shows how intentionally Spielberg chooses Williams; he trusts him to enhance his image. To analyse this further, I will break down one of their notable collaborations. 

In an interview with Stephen Colbert, he talks to Williams and Spielberg about their creative process. A large chunk of the interview focuses on Jaws and how the iconic two-note motif came to be, as well as how intertwined it was with the writing process. Due to mechanical difficulties with the shark, the music took the place of the shark. Spielberg combined not directly showing the shark, instead using visual cues and implication with Williams’ motif to make you feel a sense of dread. The ostinato between E and F gradually accelerates using the low strings and the tuba, implying the shark getting closer and does not provide a ‘release’; it instead grants a feeling of inevitability. Due to the mechanical issues of the model shark, the music became a character (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 2023). Jaws became one of the most influential shark-themed movies of its time, whilst showing very little of the actual shark it was centred on.  This would not have been possible without Williams’s ‘rewrite’. Spielberg said, when he was originally shown this motif, that he thought ‘it was a joke’ (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 2023), but he ‘trusted Williams’ judgment and we are therefore left with one of the most memorable themes of all time because of that trust. The music, in many ways, can have a greater emotional impact on the audience than the actual fear response caused by the shark itself, as it is used to evoke dread and foreboding, accompanied by scenes of bloodied waters or people in distress. It is important to note that a complete in-depth understanding of the script and the director’s vision is crucial. A director meets the composer during pre-production, and this is how the idea of a rewrite artist becomes possible. The partnership works so well in many ways due to the similarities in their work. Spielberg creates a big spectacle, which is very nicely complemented by the grandeur of orchestration, which John Williams uses. The wide array of sounds in the orchestra, especially, helps create the spectacle.

After Jaws, Spielberg again contacted Williams to work on his new film, E.T. In relation to the scene where the bicycles fly, Williams talks about the story telling in his music, ‘the development of the music’s structure with the story … prior to the bicycles you would hear two or three notes of the theme thats all then the next time you may here three or four notes and its beginning to form in your memory as we are going along, and as the bicycles take off you hear all twelve of the notes and the melody is realised and finished’ (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 2023).  Film music is never supposed to be a standalone composition; it is supposed to be a part of the movie, which is why it is so important that you understand the material, and it is very clear here that Williams does. Not hearing the full melody until they are in the air could very well symbolise the inner turmoil the characters are feeling, will we, won’t we escape, but as they are lifted into the air, you get the full release, and that emotional payoff is realised. Ironically, however, during the editing process, the timing of the score was so complex that it would not fit perfectly, but Spielberg. fully aware of the impact John’s music can have and seeing his vision, edited his visuals to fit the music. This again shows how music is a narrative force with a beginning and a conclusion. The impact of the melody would fall somewhat flat if not for the orchestration, which lifts it only higher. The heroism and dramatism of the brass instruments and the warmth of the stringed instruments show emotions, while the melody acts as the words. (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, 2023)

Now, comparing the music from Jaws to E.T., we really see how different the approach to the score was, which really has to do with the intended audience. E.T. is a film seemingly designed to capture children’s imaginations, and the score only enhances this. It is heroic with clear resolution, whereas Jaws, a film for a more mature audience, relies on that tension garnered from that tense two-note motif, which does not need release except with bloody visual release showing the shark’s carnage. The adaptability of the partnership again shows why it is such a successful pairing. An article in the Art of Composing lists quotes on the pairing and offers some useful insights; Spielberg has also said that if something is wrong with a cue, he will blame the scene rather than John. This shows his ability to adapt, as ‘The scene should carry itself without music.’(Brantingham, 2015).

Spielberg uses a variety of techniques that give his films a distinct Spielberg feel. According to an article from ‘filmmustage’, Spielberg’s use of the close-up on characters’ faces, whilst not being exclusive to him, is a tool he uses when a character is struck by something terrifying or mesmerising (Shkurny, 2021). You can see how John Williams’ score for films such as Jurassic Park is so linked to emotion, and in an obvious way, due to the audience’s age. The first time our main characters are shown a dinosaur, we are first shown the shock on our characters’ faces with held notes in the score before the dinosaur is unveiled, and the main theme kicks in. The hold notes before the melody are the equivalent of the close-ups before the unveiling. It shows how film music must be written for the scene. A nice quote from an article by Indiewire ‘his films tend to inspire young people struggling to understand the world, the music guides the emotion. If the soft theme ‘full of awe and childlike wonder’, was replaced with something dark or ominous, the dinosaur would be viewed as a threat. As Claudia Gorbman discusses in Unheard Melodies, music helps anchor a film and resolves any emotional ambiguity in a scene, which is especially useful to younger viewers (Littlefield, 1990).

In a recent interview with The Guardian, John Williams speaks very negatively about film music, expressing his distaste for it. He did, however, praise Spielberg for his musical background and knowledge of the subject (Dalya Alberge, 2025). In a video I found of the pair composing the ET score, Williams is sitting on the piano whilst Spielberg is showing the film. There is a constant dialogue about the music and its place within the film; it feels like a natural transition from loneliness into tenderness. Spielberg’s comments show clearly his thoughts on how music fits into his films; it moves with the emotion and, in places, guides it. During the composing phase, there is more conversation on whether the music should play on the character’s smile and where the call should transition into the theme, with queries about minutiae such as if characters are looking up In ET, it is easy to infer the importance of this in composition, as space is a huge theme of wonder in the film (B2FSchool, 2024). In terms of why Spielberg chooses Williams time and time again, the clear dedication, commitment, but most importantly, the understanding of his role Williams has is an obvious draw and as mentioned before, Spielberg’s clear engagement and communion of his vision and music knowledge is an obvious draw for Williams. In an NME article, Spielberg is quoted from a documentary saying that, once he heard Williams’ score, he saw his films in a whole new light (Aubrey, 2025).

To conclude, this duo is one of the most iconic in film history and has together created moments that will transcend the years. As Spielberg says, ‘Without John Williams, bikes don’t really fly’. Music in film is essential; it elevates the emotional impact of a scene in a way that imagery alone can not.

Source 1: Ayllon, B. (2025). The Sound of Cinema: John Williams & Steven Spielberg’s Legendary Partnership – Houston Symphony. [online] Houston Symphony. Available at: https://houstonsymphony.org/the-sound-of-cinema-john-williams-steven-spielbergs-legendary-partnership/ [Accessed 10/01/2026]

Source 2: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2023). John Williams & Steven Spielberg: We’ve Never Had An Argument In 29 Films Together. [online] www.youtube.com. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFIBD829-HU [Accessed 10/01/2026]. 

Source 3: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2023). How Music Becomes an Actor in the Films of John Williams & Steven Spielberg. [online] www.youtube.com. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTKs0JRVlrQ. 

Source 4: Brantingham, J. (2015). Unbuttoned Trust: The Collaboration of John Williams and Steven Spielberg. [online] Art of Composing. Available at: https://www.artofcomposing.com/unbuttoned-trust-the-collaboration-of-john-williams-and-steven-spielberg. 

Source 5: Shkurny, A. (2021). Defining reality: Steven Spielberg – Filmustage Blog. [online] Filmustage. Available at: https://filmustage.com/blog/defining-reality-steven-spielberg/. [Accessed 10/01/2026]

Source 6: Littlefield, R. (1990). Review of Claudia Gorbman, ed., Unheard Melodies: Narrative Film Music. [online] Academia.edu. Available at: https://www.academia.edu/68320125/Review_of_Claudia_Gorbman_ed_Unheard_Melodies_Narrative_Film_Music [Accessed 10 Jan. 2026].

Source 7: Dalya Alberge (2025). Composer John Williams says he ‘never liked film music very much’. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/aug/24/composer-john-williams-never-liked-film-music-very-much. [Accessed 10/01/2026]

Source 8: B2FSchool (2024). John William and Steven Spielberg composing the score for E.T (1982). [online] www.youtube.com. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Eu9m8QyrJL0 [Accessed 10/01/2026]]

Source 9: Aubrey, E. (2025). John Williams and Steven Spielberg reuniting for 30th film together. [online] NME. Available at: https://www.nme.com/news/film/john-williams-and-steven-spielberg-reuniting-for-30th-film-together-3903546  [Accessed 10/01/2026]