The music for “Disclosure Day,” by John Williams, is Steven Spielberg’s 30th score, dating back more than half a century to his first film together in 1974, “Sugarland Express.”
This may be Williams’ last film score. No one has officially said that, and in fact, Spielberg has already said that he and Williams are in talks about doing a 31st movie together.
But Williams, now 94, hinted three years ago that the score for Spielberg’s The Fabelmans would be his swan song. The director convinced him to do Disclosure Day even after Williams had suggested four other composers as potential successors.
Williams is no longer giving press conferences (“he wants to focus his energies on his writing duties,” a spokesperson says), and Spielberg was not available for this article.
Sources say director Spielberg wanted Williams’ score for Disclosure Day so badly that he scheduled seven recording sessions over six months to make it as easy as possible for the composer and give him the time he needed to conceive and record all the music.
Most film sessions take place over a week or two, and many composers only have a few weeks to compose a complete film score. Williams, who has faced unspecified “health challenges” over the past two years and is currently only seen in public in a wheelchair, approached “Disclosure Day” with surprising energy, sources report.
Williams started writing last summer. A 96-instrument orchestra was formed and the first recording was made on September 11, 2025 at the Sony (recently renamed the John Williams Music Building).
Sources report that it was a traditional symphonic ensemble, with at least four bassoons required for the particularly dark ensemble. Keyboards included not only pianos and celeste, but also synthesizers. And instead of the usual harp there were two harps.
And although the film’s credits state that the score was “orchestrated and conducted” by Williams along with longtime colleagues William Ross and Randy Carver, those closest to the maestro claim that Williams orchestrated the entire score and conducted much of it, usually seated and sometimes standing.
Anyone who has witnessed Williams at a recording session will tell you that he is always very precise about orchestral details and knows exactly how every note should sound. Sources say that Ross and Carver occasionally “adapted” Williams’ material to accommodate modifications for the film.
Recording continued throughout the fall and winter, with two more sessions in October, two in December, one in January 2026, and the final session on February 20th. The extended schedule gave the composer plenty of time to compose, and the score was completed as the months passed.
“John was amazingly energetic. He was always very polite and humble. He was very acutely aware of rhythmic flaws and nuances, and was a little obsessive at times. Spielberg was happy with everything,” says one musician.
According to sources, the director played an active role throughout. “He gave me a lot of input,” says another musician. “It felt so special to witness that relationship. There were also moments where he made musical suggestions and they tried something a little different, and they actually ended up going with it. It just felt like it summed up their relationship, how well they knew each other and how well they understood each other’s craft. It was almost magical.”
On December 19th, a 30-voice women’s choir joined the orchestra. They were evenly divided between sopranos and altos, plus a solo voice for some cues. The selection of the singer required experimentation and auditions with several singers, including children, but the final choice was Holly Cedillos (credited in the film as “vocal soloist”). His voice can be heard briefly in the film, but more prominently during the end credits.
Interestingly, the choir recorded wordless vocal sounds along with the orchestra. This is another unusual aspect of the session. Most composers record the chorus separately and mix it with the orchestra later. Williams likes to have everyone in the same room at the same time.
All sessions were private and had very few participants. Spielberg was in a cavernous studio just a few feet away from Williams with music editor Ramiro Berghardt. They shared a small screen together and could watch the film wind as the cues were recorded.
The film was not shown on the big screen behind the orchestra, as would be the case under normal circumstances. That way, neither musicians nor studio technicians could see the (at the time) top secret footage.
Over seven sessions, Williams recorded over two hours and 20 minutes of music. The final film includes 82 minutes of score. Some of the additional music was reserved for the soundtrack album.
Director Spielberg said in the film’s press notes, “‘Disclosure Day’ is probably the most restrained music he’s ever written for our collaboration — at least until it is. But until that moment, he’s restrained in a way that’s subtle and beautiful and enriches the experience. It’s like he’s accompanying the film from a little behind, pushing it forward.”
Much of the score is mood-setting, but done in an undeniably sophisticated manner. Williams’ main theme is meditative and ultimately powerful, taking on an Americana tinge (as much of the film takes place in middle America).
The eerie string passages and occasional dissonance subtly recall his Close Encounters score, which now seems to have been a precursor to this film. The dark moments reflect government forces trying to prevent the release of secret UFO footage. The faster pacing helps keep Margaret (Emily Blunt) and Daniel (Josh O’Connor) on the run throughout the film.
At the end of the final session, behind engineer Sean Murphy’s mixing board, cake and champagne were served, and Spielberg said, “This is our 30th movie together, and we still love each other,” to which Williams responded with a line he’s used before: “Steven is a guy you can’t say no to.”
There, director Spielberg told a small group that he had an idea for his next film, and “John just said yes.” A Williams source added: “He will appear in the next movie as long as he is able.”
Disclosure Day is the 105th theatrical film to feature an original score by John Williams. His first award was in 1958, and since then he has been nominated for an Oscar 54 times and won five of them. He has been nominated for 76 Grammy Awards and won 27 times.
His latest concert work, the six-minute “Bravo Gustavo,” was premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Disney Hall last week as Williams’ close friend Gustavo Dudamel prepared to depart for a new role with the New York Philharmonic.
Mike Knobloch, president of NBCUniversal Music and Publishing, told Variety after Monday’s New York premiere.
“The legendary composer, the godfather of modern film music, did exactly what we wanted him to do: create a distinctive, unique, original, and transcendent score for this Spielberg film in the way only he could. It’s characterful, exhilarating, scary, and poetic.”
