How a Middle School Violin Teacher Became the Secret Sauce for the Music to HBO’s ‘Last Movie Stars’
variety.comJazz Tangcay Artisans EditorSinger, songwriter, former frontman of indie rock’s “The Walkmen” and now composer, Hamilton Leithauser can’t play the horns, but that didn’t deter him from accepting a gig to put music to the HBO six-part series “The Last Movie Stars.”-Helmed by Ethan Hawke and executive-produced by Martin Scorses, the docu-series chronicles the love story of Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward alongside their simultaneously flourishing Hollywood careers.
Hawke enlisted a host of well-known voices — including Karen Allen, George Clooney, Oscar Isaac, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Zoe Kazan, Laura Linney and Sam Rockwell — to narrate the tale.
It was also Hawke who called on Leithauser to compose both score music and songs for “Last Movie Stars.” “1000 Times,” “Rough Going” (I Won’t Let Up) and “Here They Come” were among the songs Leithauser chose to include.
In a conversation with Variety, he shares his process in scoring the series — with extra credit to the guitar and his eight-year-old daughter’s violin teacher.He has been working on this for a while and had invited me to this house.
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