Hans Zimmer’s 10 best movie scores, ranked

Few names have become as recognizable in the world of arts as Hans Zimmer. The German composer presides over a career spanning four decades and a portfolio containing dozens of globally acclaimed movies, and it’s not a coincidence that most of those films actually owe a lot of that success to Zimmer, whose compositions elevate a scene — both emotionally and tonally — to heights the camera can’t quite capture.

Zimmer celebrates his 65th birthday today, so we’ve decided to pay tribute to the maestro by reviewing some of his best scores.  

10. 12 Years a Slave (2013)

While Zimmer doesn’t limit himself to a single genre, the fact that he managed to create such a timeless soundtrack for Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave — despite the fact that his playground is mostly speculative films — is a testament to his true genius.

9. Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

Zimmer’s collaboration with Denis Villeneuve starts with Blade Runner 2049, but it seems the acclaimed sci-fi director was so impressed by the composer’s work — and justifiably so — that he brought him back for 2021’s Dune and its sequel, Dune: Part Two.

8. Pirates of the Caribbean (2003-2007)

You might be wondering why the absolutely brilliant Pirates of the Caribbean score is all the way at the bottom of this list. And going by the sheer popularity of the Pirates theme alone, I’d normally agree with that sentiment. It’s just that Zimmer’s work is so distinguished on this level that you’d be hard-pressed to find any flaws in the OSTs of these films. Still, if there was a list of the best scores in movie history, we’d definitely put Pirates of the Caribbean up among the top 10 there, as well.

7. Inception (2010)

When Christopher Nolan and Hans Zimmer team up for a project, you’re in for a masterpiece. There’s simply no other way around it. Inception has also been immortalized for this very reason, and the track titled “Time” is still among Zimmer’s finest works. The fact that the composer almost always includes this in his concerts’ setlist also attests to his love for Inception.

Inception incorporates many themes like love, age, and determination into its plot, but the thing that shines the most — especially as far as the score is concerned — is the world of dreams. I believe no composer has since been able to capture the utterly bizarre state of dreaming like Zimmer, and perhaps no one ever will.

6. The Lion King (1994)

Not to blaspheme against this cinematic classic, but I genuinely believe that The Lion King wouldn’t have become as nostalgic as it is today if it weren’t for Hans Zimmer’s score. That also makes it one of the more underrated works in his back catalogue, but can we even blame people when there’s so much to talk about when it comes to the composer?

5. Kung Fu Panda trilogy (2008-2016)

Coming on the heels of The Lion King is another animated film that deserves a mention. The Kung Fu Panda trilogy by Dreamworks has one of the best scores in the history of the medium. Zimmer expands his use of various instruments to allude to eastern music, while also capturing the essence of martial flicks from a bygone age of cinema. Whether it’s Oogway’s infinite wisdom or Po’s impromptu moments of heroism, you can count on Zimmer’s music to come through for the film and land the scenes in a way that would’ve been otherwise impossible.

4. The Dark Knight trilogy (2005-2012)

A hero can be anyone, even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as creating one of the most epic OSTs in history, to let us know that the world of superhero cinema hasn’t ended. 

In Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, we have Zimmer in his prime, masterfully weaving together a series of leitmotifs that capture what it is to be a symbol of hope. Christian Bale’s version of the Caped Crusader is essentially defined by these memorable OSTs, and the greatest of them, “Rise,” plays during the final minutes of the third movie.

3. The Last Samurai (2003)

One of the things I love about Hans Zimmer is the hint of familiarity permeating every score he’s ever worked on. You could be listening to Pirates of the Caribbean, and notice that a cue of its arrangement is similar to Inception, despite the fact that the two have nothing to do with each other.

The Last Samurai is the perfect example of this, because you can almost immediately single out Zimmer as its composer, but it’s still different enough that it can stand on its own two feet.

2. Gladiator (2000)

We may never fully understand where Zimmer has taken his inspiration for the Gladiator score, but we do know that every movie or television score since then has imitated his work to some degree when it comes to capturing the essence of the Roman Empire. I still get chills whenever I watch that final scene between the usurper Commudus and Russell Crowe’s Maximus Decimus Meridius. “He was a soldier of Rome,” intones Lucilla. “Honor him.” And the music builds to an epic crescendo. That, right there, is cinematic perfection, and you can’t tell me otherwise.

1. Interstellar (2014)

Determining the best score Hans Zimmer has ever come up with will ultimately boil down to a matter of preference. I mean, you could name any one of his movies — there are literally dozens of them — and you’d be entitled to that opinion. You’d just be wrong.

Listen, I am ready to die on this hill. Interstellar is not just the best Hans Zimmer movie score, it’s one of the best OSTs of all time. It’s probably one of the most profound compositions in the history of music. And the greatest part? Zimmer didn’t even know he was composing for a space drama. Nolan just told him the music would need to capture the love between a father and his daughter. Zimmer, in obvious Zimmer fashion, probably said, “Say no more,” and created this timeless masterpiece.