The Ten Best Danny Elfman Themes & Film Scores

Danny Elfman is responsible for some of the most memorable film scores of all time. Here are our ten absolute favorites.

Superstar conductor and new-wave icon Danny Elfman took to the stage at Coachella this weekend. Audiences of a discerning age were treated to a musical ride through some of his most well-known works as well as some tunes from his Oingo Boingo days. This dude is 68 and clearly still having the time of his life. Just look at him during this live rendition of his famous theme for The Simpsons.

So we ranked the best Danny Elfman themes. Introduction: Coachella details. We’re not including any Oingo-Boingo songs because, frankly, that’s its own article.

There are so many iconic Elfman tunes out there. In celebration of this weekend’s performance, let’s roll through our top 10 favorite Danny Elfman musical moments.

10. Good Will Hunting (1997)

Look, if Robin Williams in a dramatic role isn’t enough to get you in your feels, then Elfman’s score to Good Will Hunting may do the trick. The critically-acclaimed film was directed by Gus Van Sant, who Elfman has teamed up with a few times. The score was nominated for an Oscar, but it lost to the score to Titanic. Still, it might not be Elfman’s most memorable soundtrack, but it makes for grade-A reading music.

9. Mars Attacks (1996)

This film based on the trading card series was one of Tim Burton’s more lukewarm films as far as fans were concerned. The score, however, remains solid. Danni Elfman’s usual orchestra style is here with his usual choral elements sprinkled on top. But there are also some subtly-used, vintage-feeling science fiction vibes to the music.

8. Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985)

Pee-Wee was actually the start of Elfman’s career scoring films. Tim Burton and Paul Reubens were Oingo Boingo fans, so they invited Danny Elfman to write the film’s score. Elfman told Yahoo! that he thought the film’s score would “get thrown out”, and that it would ruin his chances of ever getting hired to compose another. But it’s creative, fun, and catchy notes rocketing him into the realm of Hollywood composers.

7. Planet of the Apes (2001)

Once again, one of Danny Elfman’s better film scores come attached to one of Tim Burton’s less-than-lustrous films. Regardless of how meh the film was, Danny Elfman’s score for Planet of the Apes certainly builds a mood. Leaning heavily into percussions, it tells a musical story in a more warlike tone than some of his previous works.

6. Spider-Man (2002)

Sam Raimi’s first Spider-Man movie has come full circle. From Hollywood blockbuster to the butt of the joke and back around to a classic favorite, Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man will always hold a special place in our hearts. And as soon as you hear the iconic theme music (no, not the Nickelback song, the instrumental one), you’re transported back to the early 2000s. Danny Elfman’s Spider-Man score was a little darker than your classic “does whatever a spider can” jam. Still, it really captured the action and high-stakes of the life of this Peter Parker.

5. Edward Scissorhands (1990)

If it were possible to score the sound of snow, Earth would hire Danny Elfman to do it. The score for this film marks one of Elfman and Tim Burton’s more iconic team-ups. Like the film’s title character, the orchestral score is a little dark, very gentle, and full of wonder. Marked by the choir voices of small children and what can best be described as the signature Elfman twinkling sound, one could arguably say that this is epitome Elfman-Burton (after that other goth Christmas movie they did together).

4. The Simpsons (1989)

Look, this theme song is just part of the cultural zeitgeist for the rest of history. It’s been remade and repurposed a million times over the coarse of the show’s history, including all of Lisa’s saxophone solo versions. The opening notes immediately call the image of a bright blue sky and white clouds with “The Simpsons” written across it. And those voices singing the famous family’s name? That’s Elfman and two of his friends.

3. Beetlejuice (1988)

Listening to the Beetlejuice theme sounds like going on the most thrilling and fun Halloween-themed roller coaster ride of your life. It’s one of my favorites because it mixes Elfman’s signature darkness with the spirit of fun you get from Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. It sounds like hauntings and mischief, which perfectly captures the mood of the movie.

It’s also the first film that spawned an animated series. And that animated series had an amazing intro theme also written by Elfman. Ahh, the sounds of my childhood:

2. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Forever a part of the hearts and souls of weird kids everywhere, The Nightmare Before Christmas is an annual holiday tradition whose soundtrack gets plenty of play from October through December. Even Elfman’s voice is a part of it, since he’s also the singing voice for Jack Skellington. Elfman wrote and composed the songs based on scene descriptions from Burton.

1. Batman (1989), Batman Returns (1992), & Batman: The Animated Series (1992)

Whichever of his three Batman themes is your favorite, the score gets you hyped every time you hear it. The horns! The wind instruments! The cymbals! 30 years later and this soundtrack still gives me chills.

Of course, this spot also, extension, belongs to the theme for the animated series, the song that will live rent-free in my head until the day I die. Every time HBO Max asks if I want to skip the opening credits, I’m a little offended.

What’s your favorite Danny Elfman jam?

Author: Danni Danger

Danni is a staff writer and editor whose expertise lies in comic books, superhero movies, science fiction/fantasy, horror, and cheesy dad jokes. They spent 8 glorious years working at Austin Books & Comics, and created content for almost 15 years. They've written for the Daily Dot and made YouTube content with the Weirdlings. Danni currently does all the things for BoLS, Screen Fanatic, and TheStreet.