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Music, Maestro, Please: Danny Elfman Willing to Score Films for Just $1

Bringing to life the likes of 'Batman,' 'Spider-Man,' and 'Edward Scissorhands,' Danny Elfman's haunting melodies have helped craft our cinematic childhoods over the past 40 years.

By Tom ChapmanPublished 6 years ago 2 min read
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[Credit: Warner Bros.]

Bringing to life the likes of Batman, Spider-Man, and Edward Scissorhands, #DannyElfman's haunting melodies have helped craft our cinematic childhoods over the past 40 years. Alongside the news that he will be taking over from superhero superstar #HansZimmer to provide the score for #ZackSnyder's #JusticeLeague, the whole film just got a push in the right direction. Fans of the #DCEU are worried that JL could be another flop in the wrong direction for the studio, and while music may seem like a trivial thing, it can certainly add a lot to a film.

When you are one of the best-loved composers out there, you can pretty much get away with charging what you want to put those nimble fingers to work; however, Elfman has shocked us by revealing he is willing to work for as little as $1. If you have any kids' birthday parties coming up, better get him booked ASAP.

Score Of The Worlds

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Elfman revealed that his illustrious career and some huge films haven't actually left him with much to retire on:

"The majority of the big studio stuff, my collaborations with Tim [Burton], it’s all owned by them. I would say that I own the rights to maybe 5 percent of what I've written. Every year, I try to do at least one $1 film. On those films, I do own the publishing. Obviously, if they’re only paying me a dollar I gotta get something."

It is a clever move, because we all know that holding rights to anything in cinema can lead to some major paychecks — just look at Harrison Ford with Star Wars. While we are sure that Danny will be getting slightly more than $1 for his work on Justice League, don't expect him to be getting any rights to the superhero blockbuster.

However, it isn't all take, take, take. Keen to give back to the community, Elfman recently launched a competition with the 2017 LA Film Festival, offering all six pieces of music from his "Rabbit and Rogue" ballet to filmmakers without a license fee. Most remembered across Tim Burton's eclectic filmography, it is a little ironic that by not owning his own property, Elfman has to actually pay to use it whenever he performs live — but, go figure.

He also spoke candidly about a time when he wasn't always the music maestro that we have come to adore. Revealing what it was like to be a street musician, it sounds a million miles away from his upcoming Justice League days:

"When you’re a street musician, it’s real simple. A good day on the street means you come home with a full hat and you eat. A bad day is when you come home and you’re splitting up loose change between eight people, and you’re not gonna eat."

Aiming to be the DCEU's first billion-dollar movie, Justice League will need more than an electrifying Elfman score to rocket it to the top of the box office, but at least we will have something nice to listen to if we watch Superman and co. crash and burn.

Check out the trailer for Justice League.

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About the Creator

Tom Chapman

Tom is a Manchester-based writer with square eyes and the love of a good pun. Raised on a diet of Jurassic Park, this ’90s boy has VHS flowing in his blood. No topic is too big for this freelancer by day, crime-fighting vigilante by night.

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