Star Wars' John Williams breaks his own Oscar nomination record...again

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker's Oscar nominations were record-breaking for at least one man. With a nomination for Best Score, John Williams, the legendary composer of The Rise of Skywalker (and every other Star Wars), upped his Academy Award nomination total to a whopping 52. That means, thanks to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, that he has widened the gap between anyone vying for his title of the most Oscar-nominated person alive. 

Williams has turned his plethora of nominations into gold five times: Fiddler on the Roof, Jaws, Star Wars, E.T., and Schindler's List. Now he has the chance to make it six with The Rise of Skywalker. The 87-year-old favorite of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg is still nearing that all-time nomination peak, summited by Walt Disney himself, who holds an incredible 59. Williams also holds the record for the most nominations across different decades (six), where he's tied with Ghostbusters composer Elmer Bernstein.

Williams is a franchise-defining master of sound, helping make series like Indiana Jones and Star Wars (for which he composed a score on each film aside from Rogue One) iconic at a moment's listen, and has continued his prolific and moving output late into his career.

The Rise of Skywalker score proves one of his most incredible achievements, blending the history and legacy of Star Wars into something climactic and poignant — bringing a series to an end where he is one of the few remaining original components. Hopefully Williams and Spielberg will collaborate again so he can catch Disney in the next few years.