John Williams will compose the score for Steven Spielberg’s forthcoming UFO-themed feature, extending one of cinema’s longest-running director–composer partnerships. The project, which has been developing under Universal, is targeting a 2026 release window, and industry trackers say Williams’ return would mark roughly the 30th time he has scored a Spielberg film.
The new movie stems from an original idea by Spielberg, with longtime collaborator David Koepp writing the script. Casting has been the subject of steady speculation over the past year as the production timeline firmed up. Details of the story remain under wraps, but reporting has consistently described the film as centered on unidentified aerial phenomena, echoing the director’s early interest in speculative science fiction while signaling a contemporary lens.
Momentum around the score accelerated this week when a Juilliard event host referenced Williams being in Los Angeles “working with Steven Spielberg on the next movie,” a comment that rippled through film music circles before trade outlets affirmed the composer’s involvement. The 93-year-old recently stepped back from talk of retirement after completing Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and he has continued to conduct, premiere concert works, and weigh in on the role of film music in modern culture.
Spielberg and Williams’ collaboration dates to The Sugarland Express and Jaws, and has defined touchstones across genres, from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and Raiders of the Lost Ark to Schindler’s List and Lincoln. Histories of their partnership describe a creative exchange in which music often arrives early and shapes tone and rhythm, a process that could prove central again for a mystery-oriented science-fiction narrative.
The studio has not announced a formal title or release date, and plot specifics remain closely guarded. Still, the combination of a new Spielberg science-fiction concept and a Williams score positions the film as a major 2026 event for theatrical exhibition, with observers noting the commercial and cultural weight their collaborations have carried across generations.
