Oscars 2015 Predictions, Best Score: Why 'The Theory of Everything' Will Win the Category

By Francisco Salazar Jan 27 2015, 16:02 PM EST

The Best Original Score is one of the most interesting categories at the Academy Awards because the style of music awarded is always different.

One year the scores can be classics in style and other years they can be atmospheric and even avant garde.

This year, however, the Academy has chosen five scores in very different styles and out of the four nominees two have already been nominated various times while two are newcomers. It is important to note that three scores come from Best Pictures and that will most likely make those scores the front-runners. That is because the past four winners have come from Best Picture nominees.

Of these four nominees, one will join previous winners Steven Price ("Gravity"), Mychael Danna ("Life of Pi"), Ludovic Bource ("The Artist"), and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross ("The Social Network").

Alexander Desplat - "The Grand Budapest Hotel"

Desplat is nominated in this category twice and, as a result, he picked up his eighth nomination for the Academy Awards. The composer has previously been nominated for his work on "The Queen," "The King's Speech," "Fantastic Mr. Fox" and "Argo," among other films. The nomination for "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is somewhat of a surprise as the score had not really generated a lot of buzz during awards season. However, the nomination in this category demonstrates the support the film had with the industry. Desplat has worked with Wes Anderson on two prior occasions including "Fantastic Mr. Fox" and "Moonrise Kingdom." Unless "The Grand Budapest Hotel" wins major technical awards, Desplat will not win for his score.

Alexandre Desplat - "The Imitation Game"

Aside from his nomination for "The Grand Budapest Hotel," Desplat is also nominated for Morten Tyldum's historical film. Unlike his nomination for "The Grand Budapest Hotel," Desplat has received nomination for the Golden Globe and the British Independent Film Awards. Desplat noted that when he scored the film, he had limited time because he stepped in for another composer. He also noted that he used electronic sounds but also made sure to keep the score intimidate to emphasize Alan Turning's character. While Desplat has received a lot of buzz for his work on the film, he is unlikely to win the category this year. The fact that he is nominated twice will most likely split voters.

Johann Johannsson - "The Theory of Everything"

Johannsson has received his first nomination for his work on the Stephen Hawking biopic. The Icelandic composer had a breakout year last year when he wrote the music for "Prisoners" and garnered a lot of attention for his work. When scoring the film, Johannsson first saw a rough cut and drew a lot of inspiration from the performance and the rhythm of the film. His score has already received rave reviews and has already won the Golden Globe. He is also nominated for the BAFTA. Given the immense support the film has obtained throughout the past weeks, it is likely the film will win the Best Score award on Oscar Sunday.

Gary Yershon - "Mr. Turner"

Yershon's nomination in the category was the big surprise of Oscar morning. The composer was off the radar throughout the season and had not received a single precursor nomination. The score in the film is extremely subtle and it is one that could go unrecognized on the first viewing of the film. The Academy's election to nominate the score demonstrates the support the organization has for the film. However, since the movie is only nominated for technical awards, it is unlikely the film will win this category.

Hans Zimmer - "Interstellar"

For his work on Christopher Nolan's epic, Zimmer received his tenth Oscar nomination. This is the second nomination Zimmer obtained for his collaborations with Nolan. He was previously nominated for his work on Nolan's "Inception." Other nominations have included "Sherlock Holmes," "Gladiator" and he won for "the Lion King" in 1994. For his work on "Interstellar" Zimmer has received nominations at the BAFTAs, Golden Globes, Critics' Choice and a number of critics' circles. However, he has failed to win a single award. "Interstellar" has not been an industry favorite throughout the year especially since it received mixed reviews and had a number of complaints over the sound mix. With all these complaints, Zimmer's score is unlikely to win this year.