Where Are the Blockbuster Soundtracks? The Screen Has Gone Dark for Hit Movie Albums Since ‘Wicked’ & ‘Twisters’
For the eighth week in a row, not a single soundtrack appears in the top half of the Billboard 200. That’s the longest such shutout since 2021, when the pandemic disrupted moviegoing and as a result, diminished the opportunities for hit soundtracks. For 13 consecutive weeks that year, from July 31 to Oct. 23, no soundtracks appeared in the top 100.
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Twisters: The Album is the highest-ranking soundtrack on this week’s Billboard 200, but it’s way down at No. 174. The album, which was led by Luke Combs’ hit single “Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma,” debuted and peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 last August and spent its first four weeks in the top 10.
This is the album’s 24th nonconsecutive week atop Top Soundtracks. That’s the longest stay at No. 1 for a soundtrack in one release cycle since Barbie: The Album logged 33 weeks at No. 1 in 2023-24. Both of these soundtracks had long runs at No. 1 in part because there wasn’t much fresh competition from hit soundtracks. For the past eight weeks, Twisters: The Album has headed Top Soundtracks without appearing in the top 100 on the Billboard 200. Likewise, for the last 10 weeks that Barbie: The Album headed Top Soundtracks, it did not appear in the top half of the Billboard 200.
The soundtrack business is cyclical. Just as Wicked shook up the soundtrack scene in December when it entered the Billboard 200 at No. 2 (and spent its first eight weeks in the top 10), another hit soundtrack could appear soon and revive the fortunes of this venerable genre.
Smurfs Movie Soundtrack (Music From & Inspired By) — which includes “Friend of Mine,” Rihanna‘s first new song in three years — could break into the top 100 next week. If not, F1: The Album, featuring such artists as Don Toliver featuring Doja Cat, ROSÉ, Myke Towers and Tate McRae, is expected to be a smash after it is released on June 27. The album is being released by Atlantic Records and Apple Video Programming. Atlantic released several of the other top-selling soundtracks of recent years, including The Greatest Showman, Barbie: The Album and Twisters: The Album.
Paul Grein
Billboard
