The expansion of Zack Snyder’s Justice League isn’t just contained to HBO Max’s 242-minute movie, after it was announced that composer Tom Holkenborg’s full score is coming to vinyl as part of a seven disc collection from Mondo.
Much like Snyder himself, Holkenborg departed Justice League long before the theatrical version of the DC Films blockbuster was released with his work remaining incomplete; Danny Elfman was hired to craft an entirely new musical accompaniment to the all-star comic book adaptation less than five months before the first version of the film hit theaters. The similarities between Snyder and Holkenborg’s respective associations with Justice League continues now that the latter is getting a four-hour epic of his own.
The limited edition collectible set includes every second of music the man also known as Junkie XL composed for the streaming exclusive, pressed on seven 180 Gram vinyl discs, with the final disc coming with a laser-etched B-side and a black, white and silver foil stamped case in keeping with the movie’s aesthetic.
Much like the majority of the movie, Holkenborg’s work on the Snyder Cut was vastly superior to Elfman’s, which was uninspired by the regular Tim Burton collaborator’s usual standards. Holkenborg's previous work over the years includes the thumping soundtracks to the likes of 300: Rise of an Empire, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Mad Max: Fury Road and Godzilla vs. Kong.
The collection is available to pre-order from Wednesday on Mondo’s website, and to celebrate the announcement, Mondo Creative Director of Music Mo Shafeek celebrated the work of Holkenborg and hyped up his contributions to Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
“The filmmaking story behind Zack Snyder's return to his DC Comics juggernaut is well known at this point, but not enough time has been spent on the journey of the film's once-shelved score. The incredible composer behind one of last decade's biggest filmmaking triumphs, Tom Holkenborg joined the sadly far-too-large club of composers across filmmaking history to have their blockbuster scores replaced. But the big-budget redemption arc of Zack Snyder's original vision for Justice League presented Holkenborg with the opportunity to build upon what he had started many years ago, with new skills and tools - this time with no other cook in the kitchen but his director and friend."
Most of the talk swirling around Zack Snyder’s Justice League has been focused on the director being vindicated by finally landing the opportunity to realize his unimpeded creative vision, but the upcoming release of the seven-disc soundtrack means that Holkenborg is also finally receiving his long-awaited due, when his initial departure was one of the more overlooked aspects of the entire torturous Justice League saga.