James Gunn Revives John Williams’ Superman Theme for 2025 Superman Teaser

James Gunn shared two very short promos Monday for his upcoming Superman film, starring David Corenswet as the Man of Steel — and revisited the beloved John Williams theme from the 1978 Superman.

The first of two videos Gunn shared on X is simply a still image of Corenswet as the Kryptonian superhero, with the words "LOOK UP" and an animated, moving background in shades of red, white and blue, to suggest flight.

What's most notable is a wordless song playing in the background, which emerges eventually into the main motif of Williams' gorgeous "Main Theme" from Richard Donner's 1978 Superman, starring Christopher Reeve as Clark Kent/Superman, Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, and Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor.

Also Read: 5 Roles Christopher Reeve Turned Down After Superman

Here is the video:

Look up. #Superman only in theaters July 11. pic.twitter.com/hXaGAtRAGB

— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) December 16, 2024

Also compelling was a second short video: a spinning, updated image of the Superman "S" on what appears to be a vault — perhaps like one might find in the Fortress of Solitude. It ends with the promise "Teaser Trailer Thursday."

Presumably that will include scenes of the Man of Steel in motion. Here is the teaser for the teaser trailer:

#Superman #trailer Thursday. pic.twitter.com/6NKS0DencA

— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) December 16, 2024

John Williams and the Superman Theme

The sound of the John Williams score harkens back to the goodhearted, pure-but-not-naive version of Superman from 1978 — an alien keenly aware of humanity's flaws, but boundlessly optimistic about human potential. The character took a more cynical turn in Zack Snyder's 2013 Man of Steel, in which our hero killed an enemy, General Zod (Michael Shannon) in a scene some fans saw as too dark.

The 2025 version is being closely monitored by fans because Gunn, in addition to writing and directing the new film, is the co-chair and co-CEO of DC Studios, with wide sway over the direction of the entire DC cinematic universe. A diehard comic book fan all his life, Gunn has an encyclopedic knowledge of superhero characters and strong opinions about how they should be portrayed.

Also Read: 5 David Corenswet Roles to Enjoy Before Seeing Him as Superman

Fans shared their appreciation for Gunn's "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach to the Williams score.

"Welp, looks like they’ve nailed the score, don’t have to reinvent his theme every new iteration when he already has the best theme ever put to film," wrote filmmaker John Handem Piette.

After working alongside composers including Henry Mancini and Elmer Bernstein, Williams earned his first Oscar nomination for his score for 1967's Valley of the Dolls  and was again nominated for 1969's Goodbye, Mr. Chips. He built his reputation with scores for disaster films including 1974's The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno.

He won the first of his five Oscars for composing for 1972's Fiddler on the Roof, and won again for Jaws, Star Wars, E.T. the Extraterrestrial and Schindler's List.

The 1978 theme, arriving just a year after Williams' soundtrack for Star Wars, established him as Hollywood's go-to composer for franchises in need of sweeping, heroic music — a position he has never relinquished.

The now 92-year-old has also composed scores for Raiders of the Lost Ark, Home Alone, and the Harry Potter franchise, and countless other films.

Gunn's nod back to his score continues a recent celebration of Williams' spectacular career that includes the new Laurent Bouzereau documentary Music by John Williams, which includes among its producers some of Williams' most famous collaborators: Steven Spielberg, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey, Sara Bernstein, Justin Wilkes, Meredith Kaulfers, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, and Bouzereau, with Markus Keith and Michael Rosenberg serving as executive producers. The film is now on Disney+.

Here is John Williams conducting:

Main image: Superman, shared on X by James Gunn. DC Studios.