Whenever a conversation about the great John Williams scores picks up, it doesn’t take too long for Home Alone to be mentioned. I mean, compositions like “Somewhere in My Memory” and “Star of Bethlehem” helped turn Chris Columbus’ 1990 holiday film into not only one of the best ‘90s movies, but also an all-time great Christmas classic. However, did you know that the Academy Award-winning composer and frequent Steven Spielberg collaborator wasn’t initially involved with the picture? I certainly didn’t.
Well, it turns out that an entirely different yet equally prolific composer was all set to score Home Alone, only to be forced to drop out late in the game because of an animated Disney movie. Here’s how an oft-overlooked Disney Renaissance era movie led to one of the best movie soundtracks of all time.
