Hans Zimmer’s score for Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part 2” was going to heavily contend for the Original Score Oscar, but it’s sadly not met the eligibility requirements to be nominated for an Academy Award, according to Variety.
Apparently, the music surpasses the Academy’s limit on pre-existing music. It’s too similar to Zimmer’s “Dune” (2021) score. No matter the backlash this has been getting online, it makes sense to me — the score that was used in ‘Dune 2’ is very similar to the first film, and Zimmer already won the Oscar for it.
According to The Academy, the rule states, “In cases such as sequels and franchises from any media, the score must not use more than 20% of pre-existing themes and music borrowed from previous scores in the franchise.” However, Zimmer’s score for “Dune: Part Two” will not be disqualified from other awards, including the Critics Choice Awards, Golden Globes, BAFTA, and the Grammys.
What all of this means is that the race is now wide open for other frontrunners to emerge, and I’m now thinking that it’s a two-way race between Volker Bertelmann (“Conclave”) and Daniel Blumberg (“The Brutalist”). Currently #3 in my prediction is Camille and Clément Ducol’s “Emilia Perez” score.