Who composed the music for John Carpenter’s 1982 horror film The Thing?

Ennio Morricone composed the music for John Carpenter’s 1982 horror film The Thing.

The Thing follows researchers at an Antarctic station who encounter an extraterrestrial organism capable of imitating other life forms. Carpenter directed the film, which was adapted from John W. Campbell Jr.’s 1938 novella Who Goes There?

Morricone’s score uses sparse electronic and orchestral textures, including a low, pulsing motif that reinforces the film’s paranoia and isolation. Carpenter also contributed additional music, and the soundtrack’s final form reflects collaboration between the two filmmakers.

The Thing is sometimes remembered as a Carpenter-composed score because Carpenter often wrote music for his own films, including Halloween and Escape from New York. However, Morricone received the official composing credit for The Thing. The film initially received mixed reviews but later became highly regarded as a landmark of science-fiction horror.