Theodore Shapiro Named a BMI Icon at the 2026 BMI Film, TV and Visual Media Awards

May 13, 2026

The Ceremony Also Celebrated the Previous Year's Top Composers in Film, TV and Visual Media

LOS ANGELES, CA (May 13, 2026) - Tonight, BMI® celebrated its top performing composers of the past year at the 2026 BMI Film, TV and Visual Media Awards held at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Theodore Shapiro was honored with the prestigious BMI Icon Award during the ceremony, recognizing his extraordinary body of work across film and TV over the last 25 years. The evening also saluted the composers of the previous year's top-grossing films, top-rated primetime network television series, highest-ranking cable and streamed media programs and video games. The award show was hosted by BMI CEO Mike O'Neill, BMI Executive Vice President, Chief Revenue & Creative Officer, Mike Steinberg, and BMI Vice President, Creative, Film, TV & Visual Media, Tracy McKnight.

Steinberg presented Shapiro with the night's highest honor stating, "Teddy, it is such a privilege to celebrate your incomparable and enduring contributions to the world of film and television music. We are very proud to pay tribute to your rich legacy and beyond excited for all you will create next."

During the ceremony, a tribute video celebrated Shapiro's brilliant body of work and featured heartfelt messages from his family and many collaborators including Paul Feig, Chris Fogel, Ludwig Göransson, Karyn Kusama, Jay Roach, Sam Schwartz and Ben Stiller, among others.

Upon receiving the BMI Icon Award Shapiro said, "I want to thank BMI for everything you do on behalf of all of us, the work that you do in support of us is so impactful." He went on to thank his peers and collaborators and stated, "There are so many people in this room who have taught me so much…and I feel a really strong kinship with all of you, that shared language that we have knits us into a community… it's such an honor to accept this award in your presence."

Over his decades-long career, Shapiro's scores have contributed to over a billion dollars in box office revenue and garnered a collection of accolades, including an International Film Music Critics Award, multiple Hollywood Music in Media Awards and back-to-back Emmys for his work on Severance. Tonight, he added three BMI Awards to his collection for his work on Another Simple Favor, Severance and The Housemaid, bringing his total to 28 BMI Awards. Most recently, he scored the highly anticipated sequel to The Devil Wears Prada, Focker in Law, and the Apple TV+ mini-series The Off Weeks.

In receiving this honor, Shapiro joins a prestigious list of BMI Icon Award recipients including Terence Blanchard, Mychael Danna, Alexandre Desplat, Ramin Djawadi, Harry Gregson-Williams, James Newton Howard, Christopher Lennertz, Thomas Newman, Rachel Portman (PRS), Mike Post, Atticus Ross, Alan Silvestri, Brian Tyler and John Williams, among others.

Many notable composers were honored during the ceremony including Sherri Chung for Found, Alexandre Desplat for Jurassic World Rebirth, Harry Gregson-Williams for The Gilded Age, Ludwig Göransson for Sinners, Dominic Lewis for Karate Kid: Legends and Your Friends & Neighbors, Gustavo Santaolalla for The Last of Us, Sarah Schachner for Predator: Badlands, and Brian Tyler for Now You See Me: Now You Don't and 1923, among others.

The evening celebrated 19 first-time award winners including Joshua Carro, Zach Cregger, Ilan Eshkeri, Michael Griffin, Hays Holladay, Ryan Holladay, Alexis Martin and Antonio Sanchez, to name a few. Some of the night's multiple award winners included Ramin Djawadi, Fil Eisler, Christopher Lennertz, Mike Post, Atticus Ross, Alan Silvestri, and Atli Örvarsson who won the most awards this evening taking home six BMI Awards.

For a complete list of winners, visit:
https://awards.bmi.com/show/film-tv-2026. (Page will be up by 7AM ET). To join the conversation on social media, follow us @BMI and use the hashtag #BMIFilmTVAwards.

High-resolution photos and video footage can be downloaded here:
https://publicity.gettyimages.com/event/2026-bmi-film-tv-visual-media-awards

ABOUT BMI:

Celebrating over 80 years of service to songwriters, composers, music publishers and businesses, Broadcast Music, Inc.® (BMI®) is a global leader in music rights management, serving as an advocate for the value of music. BMI represents the public performance rights in over 25 million musical works created and owned by more than 1.4 million songwriters, composers, and music publishers. The Company negotiates music license agreements and distributes the fees it generates as royalties to its affiliated writers and publishers when their songs are performed in public. In 1939, BMI created a groundbreaking open-door policy becoming the only performing rights organization to welcome and represent the creators of blues, jazz, country, and American roots music. Today, the musical compositions in BMI's repertoire, from chart toppers to perennial favorites, span all genres of music and are consistently among the most-performed hits of the year. For additional information and the latest BMI news, visit bmi.com, follow us on X and Instagram @BMI or stay connected through Broadcast Music, Inc.'s Facebook page. Sign up for BMI's The Weekly ™ and receive our e-newsletter every week to stay up to date on all things music.

Media Contact:

Beatriz Valencia
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