Oscar-nominated composer Jóhann Jóhannsson dies at 48

Composer Jóhann Jóhannsson, who created the Oscar-nominated scores for The Theory of Everything and Sicario, died Friday in Berlin, EW has confirmed. The Icelandic musician was 48.

The cause of death is unknown.

“I’m so very sad,” Jóhannsson’s manager, Tim Husom, said in a statement. “Today, I lost my friend who was one of the most talented musicians and intelligent people I knew. We came a long way together.”

Jóhannsson’s creation for 2014’s The Theory of Everything, a biopic about Stephen Hawking, also earned him a Golden Globe statuette and BAFTA and Grammy nods, while his composition for 2016’s Arrival was tapped for Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Grammy nominations. In 2017, he provided the classical-meets-electronic sounds for mother!.

His most recent work includes a score for Mary Magdalene, which stars Rooney Mara, for director Garth Davis. The film does not yet have a release date in the U.S.

Jóhannsson also worked as a solo musician and created music for theater, dance, and television. His first album, Englaborn, was released in 2002, and his most recent, Orphee, came out in 2016. “Drone Man” — a piece he wrote for a string quartet, electronics, and vocal ensemble — debuted at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2015.

Jóhannsson began scoring films in Iceland in 2000, and began working with director Denis Villeneuve for Prisoners in 2013; Sicario and Arrival eventually followed.

“We are deeply saddened by the sudden loss of our client and dear friend Jóhann Jóhannsson, whose great talent, humility and kindness enriched our lives immeasurably,” read a statement released by the Gorfaine/Schwartz Agency. “His music has inspired many new generations of filmmakers and composers. He will be so greatly missed by his Gorfaine/Schwartz family as well as the entire film music community.”

Jóhannsson is survived by his parents, sisters, and daughter.

Several of Jóhannsson’s fellow composers shared their thoughts on his passing on Twitter: