[nickTunes] Hurry up we're screening: M83 to score Tom Cruise sci-fi flick, "Oblivion"

One of the buzzwords that floated around this weekend’s announcement of the impending divorce of TomKat was “Oblivion.” This would be the now-regrettable title of the sci-fi movie that Tom Cruise is currently shooting in Iceland with director Joseph Kosinski. There is, however, one reason you should be extremely excited for it: M83 will be writing the score.

The Playlist broke the story only a few days ago, and already film and music nerds are exploding with joy over the news. Cruise plays a drone repairman in the far-flung future that is forced to confront truths about his line of work, and, of course, save humanity, after he rescues a beautiful woman from a crashed spaceship. In short, it seems to be a perfect starting point for ANTHONY GONZALEZ within the film industry, and put those “Midnight City” and “Reunion” videos to shame. It’s notable that the move to score Oblivion is an organic choice for him, and will give the band a chance to expand upon the more operatic moments of Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming in an incredibly grand fashion.

And he seems completely up to the challenge, too. "I've wanted to do soundtracks for so long, and starting with such an ambitious project, especially in the sci-fi category, means a lot to me," Gonzalez told the Playlist, before adding that he’s “not afraid to do my first soundtrack on a big Hollywood movie, with a big budget and a lot of pressure... I like challenges and it excites me more than frightens me. I can't wait to hear my music played by amazing musicians, and an orchestra and brass and maybe choirs. It's a chance to create something big and I'm ready for it."

This isn’t an out-of-character choice for a director like Kosinski, whose last movie, Tron: Legacy, featured a score (or, depending on who you ask, a few new tracks) by electronic heavyweights Daft Punk. I wasn’t the world’s biggest fan of that sequel (all of the special effects and colors in the goddamn world couldn’t save that movie from its own screenplay), but it seems like the stars are aligning for a project that could be something truly special. And, hey, if it isn’t, at least it will be one incredibly pretty two-hour music video.

Oblivion will be released on April 26, 2013.

Nick Johnston is the summer music intern at the Boston Phoenix.