John Williams suggests he might be done with Star Wars after Episode IX

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

It's nothing short of incredible that over the course of four decades John Williams has composed the scores for just about every STAR WARS film out there, and although the 86 year-old composer is still going strong (having scored his 51st Academy Award nomination), his time with the STAR WARS franchise may be coming to an end. While speaking on KUSC, Williams spoke about the the upcoming STAR WARS: EPISODE IX and suggested that it could very well be his swan song in the STAR WARS franchise.

We know J.J. Abrams is preparing one now that I will hopefully do next year for him. I look forward it. It will round out a series of nine, that will be quite enough for me.

With Disney planning on keeping the STAR WARS franchise moving forward until long after we're all dust and bones, it was only going to be a matter of time before someone would need to officially replace John Williams. Michael Giacchino scored ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY and John Powell is slated to score SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY (although John Williams will be composing the main theme), so we've already been prepared for a John Williams-less future, but it will be a sad day when we've heard our final piece of new STAR WARS music from the composer. Despite suggesting that he may be done with STAR WARS after EPISODE IX, Williams has previously stated that he's not about to retire altogether. "I don’t think you can retire from writing," Williams said. "I feel very lucky, and the work that I do doesn’t depend on much. If your vision’s still good, and your hands — I have no arthritis in my hands and I play the piano very easily — I don’t think there’s any reason to deprive oneself of the fun of working. Music is so rewarding."

In the same KUSC interview, John Williams also touched upon Rey (Daisy Ridley), or more specifically, her parents. The mystery of Rey's parentage was quite the topic of conversation following STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS, but that mystery was seemingly solved in STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI. However, Williams said that "Rey’s parents might be identified to us in the next film." I'm not sure how much knowledge John Williams has of the EPISODE IX script, but an answer different from the one we got in THE LAST JEDI might just be wishful thinking on Williams' part. "I don’t believe it either," Williams said, who went on to say that Daisy Ridley's involvement was what brought him back for THE LAST JEDI. "Rey, of course, is played by Daisy Ridley, who I so loved in The Force Awakens. And last year, when [Lucasfilm president] Kathy Kennedy rang me up and said, ‘Would you do the last music for The Last Jedi?’ I said to her, ‘Is Daisy in it?’ and she said yes, so I said yes."

The 90th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on March 4th, so we'll soon know whether John Williams will take home another Oscar. Speaking of the Oscars, you can still take part in JoBlo's 18th Annual Oscar Prediction Contest, and be sure to check out our own live chat and Twitter feed on the big day!