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IMDbPro

Thomas Newman(I)

  • Music Department
  • Composer
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Thomas Newman in Finding Nemo (2003)
The friendly-but-forgetful blue tang fish reunites with her loved ones, and everyone learns a few things about the real meaning of family along the way.
Play trailer2:30
Finding Dory (2016)
4 Videos
14 Photos
Thomas Newman is an American film score composer. He was born in Los Angeles. His father was notable film score composer Alfred Newman (1900-1970). The Newman family is of Russian-Jewish descent, and includes several other well-known musicians. Thomas' mother Martha Louis Montgomery (1920-2005) wanted her sons to have a musical education. Thomas attended regular lessons in violin as a child. An older Thomas received his musical education while attending the University of Southern California and Yale University. Thomas Newman graduated as Bachelor of Arts in 1977, and a Master of Music in 1978.

Thomas originally composed music for theatrical productions in Broadway, working with his mentor Stephen Sondheim. His uncle Lionel Newman asked him to compose music for the television series "The Paper Chase" (1978-1979, 1986), which was Thomas' first credit in a television production.

In the 1980s, Thomas first worked in film. Composer John Williams, a close family friend, hired Thomas to work in the music department for space opera film "Return of the Jedi" (1983). Thomas' main work in the film was orchestrating the music in a scene where character Darth Vader dies. Afterwards, Thomas was approached by film producer Scott Rudin and hired to work as a film score composer in his own right. His first work in the field was the film score of romantic drama "Reckless" (1984).

While he worked regularly as a film score composer during the 1980s, Thomas reportedly felt he had to retrain himself for a hard and demanding job. It reportedly took him 8 years to not feel fraudulent in his efforts. In 1994, Thomas received his first Academy Award nominations, for the film scores of "The Shawshank Redemption" (1994) and "Little Women" (1994). He lost the Award to rival composer Hans Zimmer, who had been nominated for the film score of the animated film "The Lion King" (1994).

Newman was an established and increasingly famous composer in the 1990s. He received further Academy Award nominations, although he never actually won. Among his more notable works was the film score of the drama film "American Beauty" (1999), which earned Thomas both a Grammy and a BAFTA award. Newman had a good working relationship with the film's director Sam Mendes. Mendes has kept hiring Thomas as the composer for most of his films. The main exception being the comedy-drama film "Away We Go" (2009), which did not have a film score.

In the 2000s, Thomas continued working in high-profile films, such as "Road to Perdition" (2002), "Finding Nemo" (2003), and "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events". By 2006, he had been nominated eight times for an Academy Award, while never winning it. He started joking about his lack of victories in public.

In 2008, Thomas was nominated for two Academy Awards, for both the film score and an original song for the animated film "WALL-E" (2008). He won neither, though the hit song "Down to Earth" earned him a Grammy Award. He continues to work regularly in the 2010s. Among his more acclaimed works were the film scores for spy film "Skyfall" (2012) and period drama "Saving Mr. Banks" (2013). He has continued being nominated for Academy Awards. As of 2020, he has been nominated 15 times for the Academy Award. He is the most nominated living composer to have never actually won an Academy Award, tied with Alex North. He has won a total of 5 Grammy awards.
BornOctober 20, 1955
  • More at IMDbPro
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    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornOctober 20, 1955
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Nominated for 15 Oscars
    • 66 wins & 135 nominations total

Photos14

Thomas Newman in Finding Nemo (2003)
Thomas Newman in Finding Nemo (2003)
Thomas Newman, Andrew Stanton, and Jim Morris in Finding Nemo (2003)
Sandra Bullock, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ethan Hawke, Matthew McConaughey, Martin Scorsese, Christian Bale, Julie Delpy, Cate Blanchett, Jared Leto, Thomas Newman, Roger Deakins, Alexandre Desplat, Amy Adams, K.K. Barrett, Judy Becker, Robbie Brenner, David Brownlow, Chris Buck, Steve Coogan, Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Rachel Winter, Jonathan Gordon, Joel Harlow, Andy Koyama, Joe Letteri, Andy Nicholson, Jehane Noujaim, Gloria Pasqua Casny, Eric Reynolds, John Ridley, Charles Roven, Eric Saindon, June Squibb, Crispin Struthers, Richard Suckle, Jean-Marc Vallée, Michael Wilkinson, Pharrell Williams, Craig Borten, Peter Del Vecho, Guy Williams, Jennifer Lee, Esteban Crespo, Lupita Nyong'o, Melisa Wallack, David Clayton, Steve McQueen, Martin Pensa, Edgar Barens, Karim Amer, and Barkhad Abdi
Sandra Bullock, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matthew McConaughey, Thomas Newman, Roger Deakins, Amy Adams, Alfonso Cuarón, Jonathan Gordon, and Alexander Payne
Sandra Bullock, Matthew McConaughey, Thomas Newman, Roger Deakins, Amy Adams, Alfonso Cuarón, and Jonathan Gordon
Thomas Newman and Alexandre Desplat
Thomas Newman
Thomas Newman
Thomas Newman and Peter Gabriel
Thomas Newman at an event for Finding Nemo (2003)
Thomas Newman at an event for Cinderella Man (2005)

Known for:

Daniel Craig in Skyfall (2012)
Skyfall
7.8
  • Music Department
  • 2012
Kathy Najimy, John Ratzenberger, Andrew Stanton, Lori Alan, Bob Bergen, Ben Burtt, John Cygan, Donald Fullilove, Teresa Ganzel, Jeff Garlin, Jan Rabson, Jess Harnell, Kim Kopf, Sherry Lynn, Laraine Newman, Teddy Newton, Jeff Pidgeon, Jim Ward, Fred Willard, Elissa Knight, and Niki McElroy in WALL·E (2008)
WALL·E
8.4
  • Music Department(uncredited)
  • 2008
George MacKay and Dean-Charles Chapman in 1917 (2019)
1917
8.2
  • Composer
  • 2019
Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, and Emma Stone in The Help (2011)
The Help
8.1
  • Music Department(uncredited)
  • 2011

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Music Department

  • Last Voyage of the Demeter
    • conductor
    • Completed
    • 2023
  • White Bird
    • conductor
    • Post-production
    • 2023
  • Tom Hanks in A Man Called Otto (2022)
    A Man Called Otto
    • instrumental soloist
    • 2022
  • Nicholas Hoult, Patrick Gibson, Lily Collins, Anthony Boyle, and Tom Glynn-Carney in Tolkien (2019)
    Tolkien
    • conductor
    • 2019
  • Castle Rock (2018)
    Castle Rock
    • composer: theme music
    • TV Series
    • 2018
  • Five Came Back (2017)
    Five Came Back
    • main and end title music by
    • TV Mini Series
    • 2017
  • Spectre: Take a 360º tour of Q's Workshop (2016)
    Spectre: Take a 360º tour of Q's Workshop
    • stock music: Spectre
    • Video
    • 2016
  • Jesper Christensen, Daniel Craig, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Tenoch Huerta, Stephanie Sigman, and Marco Zingaro in Spectre (2015)
    Spectre
    • conductor
    • 2015
  • Tom Hanks in Bridge of Spies (2015)
    Bridge of Spies
    • conductor
    • score producer (uncredited)
    • 2015
  • Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson in Saving Mr. Banks (2013)
    Saving Mr. Banks
    • conductor
    • 2013
  • Susanna (2013)
    Susanna
    • main and end title music by
    • TV Series
    • 2013
  • Grace Gummer in Paloma (2013)
    Paloma
    • main and end title music by
    • TV Series
    • 2013
  • Jennifer Beals and Troian Bellisario in Lauren (2012)
    Lauren
    • main title music by
    • main and end title music by
    • TV Series
    • 2012–2013
  • James Bond 007 Vs. The Joker (2013)
    James Bond 007 Vs. The Joker
    • composer: stock music (uncredited)
    • Short
    • 2013
  • Jude Law, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Channing Tatum, and Rooney Mara in Side Effects (2013)
    Side Effects
    • score producer (uncredited)
    • 2013
  • Melonie Diaz in Ro (2012)
    Ro
    • main and end title music by
    • TV Series
    • 2012
  • Melora Walters in Mary (2012)
    Mary
    • main and end title music by
    • Short
    • 2012

Composer

  • White Bird
    • Composer
    • Post-production
    • 2023
  • Wendi McLendon-Covey, Mason Wertheimer, Leah Lewis, and Mamoudou Athie in Elemental (2023)
    Elemental
    • Composer
    • 2023
  • Tom Hanks in A Man Called Otto (2022)
    A Man Called Otto
    • Composer
    • 2022
  • Channing Tatum in Dog (2022)
    Dog
    • Composer (original music)
    • 2022
  • Colin Firth, Jason Isaacs, Kelly Macdonald, Matthew Macfadyen, Penelope Wilton, and Johnny Flynn in Operation Mincemeat (2021)
    Operation Mincemeat
    • Composer
    • 2021
  • Denzel Washington, Jared Leto, and Rami Malek in The Little Things (2021)
    The Little Things
    • Composer
    • 2021
  • Pixar Popcorn (2021)
    Pixar Popcorn
    • Composer (Music by)
    • TV Series
    • 2021
  • Meryl Streep in Let Them All Talk (2020)
    Let Them All Talk
    • Composer
    • 2020
  • George MacKay and Dean-Charles Chapman in 1917 (2019)
    1917
    • Composer
    • 2019
  • Nicholas Hoult, Patrick Gibson, Lily Collins, Anthony Boyle, and Tom Glynn-Carney in Tolkien (2019)
    Tolkien
    • Composer
    • 2019
  • Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson in The Highwaymen (2019)
    The Highwaymen
    • Composer
    • 2019
  • I, Spy (2018)
    I, Spy
    • composer
    • Short
    • 2018
  • Castle Rock (2018)
    Castle Rock
    • Composer
    • TV Series
    • 2018
  • Miles Teller in Thank You for Your Service (2017)
    Thank You for Your Service
    • Composer
    • 2017
  • Judi Dench and Ali Fazal in Victoria & Abdul (2017)
    Victoria & Abdul
    • Composer (music by)
    • 2017
  • Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence in Passengers (2016)
    Passengers
    • Composer (music by)
    • 2016

Soundtrack

  • Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Chris Tucker, Jason Bateman, and Viola Davis in Air (2023)
    Air
    • performer: "Leave Atlantic City!"
    • writer: "Leave Atlantic City!"
    • 2023
  • The Sound of 007: Live from the Royal Albert Hall (2022)
    The Sound of 007: Live from the Royal Albert Hall
    • music: "Spectre"
    • Video
    • 2022
  • The Sound of 007 (2022)
    The Sound of 007
    • performer: "Writing's on the Wall (Instrumental)"
    • 2022
  • Krysten Ritter, Lidya Jewett, and Winslow Fegley in Nightbooks (2021)
    Nightbooks
    • music: "Boys Need a Mother"
    • writer: "Boys Need a Mother"
    • 2021
  • Jeff Goldblum, Lisa Kudrow, James Marsden, Jimmy Kimmel, Eva Longoria, Amy Sedaris, David P. Smith, James Ryan, David Soren, James McGrath, Raphael Alejandro, Serenity Reign Brown, Ariana Greenblatt, Molly K. Gray, and Nova Reed in The Boss Baby 2: Family Business (2021)
    The Boss Baby 2: Family Business
    • writer: "May"
    • 2021
  • Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson in The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)
    The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It
    • writer: "Milk"
    • 2021
  • De utvalda barnen (2021)
    De utvalda barnen
    • performer: "Chai"
    • writer: "Chai"
    • TV Mini Series
    • 2021
  • Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo in Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021)
    Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar
    • music: "End Title"
    • 2021
  • Diminishing Returns (2016)
    Diminishing Returns
    • writer: "Theme from American Beauty"
    • music: "American Beauty Theme"
    • Podcast Series
    • 2018–2020
  • NYET! - a Brexit UK Border Farce (2019)
    NYET! - a Brexit UK Border Farce
    • writer: "Resign To My Face"
    • Short
    • 2019
  • Striptease
    • Soundtrack ("Root Beer")
    • Video
    • 2017
  • Nicolás de Jesús, Fanny García, Christel Caballero, Dhani Marie Dalí, Amayrani Luna, Monse Cuevas, Ricardo Quesada, and Luis Llamas in Cumulonimbus Kandarian (2017)
    Cumulonimbus Kandarian
    • performer: "Loverly Spring"
    • writer: "Loverly Spring"
    • Short
    • 2017
  • Joaquin Phoenix and Ekaterina Samsonov in You Were Never Really Here (2017)
    You Were Never Really Here
    • writer: "First Night" from tt0111161
    • 2017
  • Disney Magic Kingdoms (2016)
    Disney Magic Kingdoms
    • performer: "First Day", "Define Dancing"
    • writer: "First Day", "Define Dancing", "Wall-E Theme"
    • Video Game
    • 2016
  • He Named Me Malala (2015)
    He Named Me Malala
    • writer: "I Am Many"
    • 2015

Videos4

Trailer #3
Trailer 2:30
Trailer #3
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Trailer 1:45
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
The Help
Featurette 2:26
The Help
TV Spot #1
Video 1:01
TV Spot #1

Personal details

Edit
  • Alternative name
    • Tom Newman
  • Height
    • 5′ 10″ (1.78 m)
  • Born
    • October 20, 1955
    • Los Angeles, California, USA
  • Spouse
    • Ann Marie Zirbes? - present (3 children)
  • Parents
      Alfred Newman
  • Relatives
      Emil Newman(Aunt or Uncle)
  • Other works
    Album for "The Innocents"
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Interview

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Son of composer Alfred Newman; nephew of Lionel Newman and Emil Newman; cousin of Randy Newman and Joey Newman.; brother of composer David Newman, Tim Newman, Maria Newman.
  • Quotes
    On his inspiration for his American Beauty (1999) score: "Sam [Mendes] wanted things that hammered and thwacked a bit. He was interested in percussion and mallet instruments, so I started working on various ideas that involved xylophones and marimbas."
  • Trademarks
      Tuned percussion (e.g. marimba, chimes) often plays a part in his scores, figuring especially prominently in American Beauty (1999).
  • Nickname
    • Tommy

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