Ludwig Göransson dedicates third Oscar win to his dad after scooping Best Original Score for ‘Sinners’

16 March 2026, 10:42 | Updated: 16 March 2026, 10:50

The Swedish composer’s blues-heavy horror score bagged the big Academy Award prize.

Composer Ludwig Göransson has bagged his third Academy Award, winning Best Original Score for Sinners.

At age 41, this makes him the youngest composer since André Previn (and the second-youngest ever) to win three Oscars for best score. Among living composers, only John Williams and Alan Menken have had more Oscar wins for music.

He already has more Oscars than Hans Zimmer, and two less than Williams. The composer’s next big project is writing the music for Christopher Nolan’s upcoming 2026 film, The Odyssey.

Sinners, directed by Göransson’s longtime collaborator, Black Panther director Ryan Coogler, is, on the surface at least, a vampire horror movie set in the Deep South. It had already made Oscar history with 16 nominations, eventually winning four – Best Actor for Michael B Jordan, Best Original Screenplay for Coogler, Best Cinematography for Autumn Durald Arkapaw and Göransson’s Best Original Score.

Read more: Ludwig Göransson thanks parents ‘for giving me guitars, not video games’ in Oscars speech

Ludwig Göransson breaks down his 'Sinners' soundtrack

Accepting the award from the reunited Bridesmaids cast at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre last night, Göransson thanked his father for sparking a lifelong passion for music.

“When I was seven, my dad put a guitar in my arms,” he said, “It opened up my world. It was the guitar that brought me to the States and that led me to one of the greatest storytellers of our time – Ryan Coogler. Thank you, Ryan, for your vision and for making a film that resonated with audiences everywhere.”

Göransson’s haunting score fuses Swedish folk music with blues and gospel traditions and had already earned a Golden Globe, Critics Choice Award and two Grammys.

The composer is the fourth Swede to win three Academy Awards, joining Ingrid Bergman, sound editor Per Hallberg and sound designer Paul NJ Ottosson.

Read more: ‘Sinners’ composer Ludwig Göransson breaks down his movie soundtrack