The MCU has been bringing exciting characters, spectacles, and plenty of viewing options to audiences around the world since 2008. They’ve also created a long list of memorable and exciting original scores, working with more than 20 different composers spread out across 27 films and several television series. These soundtracks vary in quality, with some of them sounding like repetitive stock music than an original piece of art. Others stand out on their own and are the pinnacle of the composer’s career. This list highlights the best of the best throughout the 14-year history of the MCU.
5Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Alan Silvestri composed a nostalgic throwback to the 1940s with his sweeping score forCaptain America: The First Avenger. ForCaptain America: The Winter Soldier,Disney brought on composer Henry Jackman to bring Captain America into the modern world. That soundtrack is an exciting, fast-paced score set to match the spy caper drama - but it was his work onCaptain America: Civil Waris his absolute best. There are echoes of the previous two films, as Jackman mixes and matches the various themes that arise in the story as callbacks to the previous entries. Steve Rogers has matured, and the score reflects that. There are, of course, exciting chase and battle themes meant to build tension throughout, but it’s the choices that Henry Jackman uses later in the film that make this stand out.
As the two squads of heroes are set to do battle against each other, it would be easy to assume that the score would be a big orchestral action piece to match the intensity of the battle. However, the theme that is used is one that establishes the real tone of the scene: regret. The track, simply titled “Civil War”, has a strong melancholic rise. It’s not about the battle - it’s about the destruction of the Avengers. The loss of friendships. This theme is even more established in the final battle between Iron Man and Captain America. The track is titled “Clash”, and it’s equally melancholic. A chorus of singers pops in near the end of the song, and it’s hard not to think of some of the most dramatic moments in aStar Warsfilm as they enter. It’s equally epic and heartbreaking, and moves this film up the list as one of the best scores in the history of the MCU. Henry Jackman would follow some of these characters later in his career, as he would end up composing the music forThe Falcon and the Winter Soldieras well.
Related:MCU: Will These Actors Make Their Marvel Debuts? We Hope So!
4Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
The first two Thor films are not often considered to be in the upper echelon of the MCU. The same can be said for their scores, which are formulaic and unmemorable. When director Taika Waititi got brought onboard to direct the third Thor film, it was obvious thestudio wanted to change direction. The tone, color palette, and writing all changed drastically. The same can be said for the score forThor: Ragnarok. This synth-heavy soundtrack by Mark Mothersbaugh is an incredible callback to ’80s hair metal and fantasy, which completely sets it apart from most of the scores that the MCU has put out over the years.
The soundtrack is an energetic and fast-paced collection, but it does slow down for softer moments in the film. The death of Odin is appropriately matched with Mothersbaugh’s track titled “Twilight of the Gods”. It’s one of the most beautiful moments in the film, and the soundtrack plays a large part in that. Mark Mothersbaugh not only created one of the best MCU scores, but he helped breathe new life into a character that the MCU just hadn’t figured out yet. Unfortunately, Mark Mothersbaugh will not be coming back for the sequel,Thor: Love and Thunder. The franchise, however, is in great hands withMichael Giacchino coming onboard.
3Loki (2021)
The MCU has done a great job of allowing creative people to work within the confines of the Disney product, while also bringing something new to the table. Natalie Holt, the composer of the Disney Plus showLoki, did exactly that. The soundtrack is a winding, dreamy, synth-heavy score that perfectly reflects the chaotic nature of the character. In an interview with Variety, composer Natalie Holt admits her process started with the character of Loki himself: “He’s a kind of grand, Machiavellian character … and Tom Hiddleston’s performance has a touch of Shakespeare to it. So I wanted to give him some gravitas and classical weight to his theme, but also have this space-age sound as well.”
Natalie Holt will be working with John Williams composing the soundtrack for the upcomingStar Wars Mini Series, Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Related:What the Obi-Wan Kenobi Trailer Reveals About the Show
2Black Panther (2018)
Black Pantherbrought in a lot of accolades when it came out. It instantly became one of the highest-rated films in the MCU, and was even nominated for Best Picture at The Academy Awards. Some of this success can be attributed to the fantastic score by Ludwig Göransson.
Göransson had been a long-time friend and collaborator of director Ryan Coogler before taking on the project.In an interview with Pitchfork, Göransson describes his process of preparing for this film: “After I read the script and I started reading the comic, I knew the only way I could do this was to go to Africa and do research. I took a month off and traveled to Senegal. I got connected with this artist, Baaba Maal, and traveled around with him while he was on tour. After, I was able to get into a studio and just record amazing musicians for weeks.”
Black Panthertook a non-traditional approach by bringing in popular hip-hop and pop artists to record original songs for the movie to accompany the more traditional score. What it created was the MCU’s most unique and catchy soundtrack that also happened tosell enough records to go platinum.
1The Avengers (2012)
There are some movie scores that have transcended the silver screen to become instantly recognizable ear worms. John Williams has always been the king of these, with almost anyone being able to recognize a piece fromStar Wars,Indiana JonesorE.T. Composer Alan Silvestri was brought onto the first Avengers film after finishingCaptain America: The First Avenger,which was a great soundtrack in its own right. The idea forThe Avengerswas to create a score that could instantly be recognized, just like the great works of John Williams. As soon as the opening credits of the film spelled out The Avengers, the theme that Silvestri created barged into theaters across the world. It has been used in everyAvengersfilm since. It’s the perfect score for the MCU, and has since become the poster theme for promotional material and trailers. It became an instantly recognizable and iconic part of the MCU.
The rest of the score is an exciting, big production affair, but the reason this score is number one on this list is thanks to the main theme alone. Silvestri would go one to scoreAvengers: Infinity WarandAvengers: Endgame, but this is the one that started it all. The score is one of the many reasons thatThe Avengersstands the test of time.
