John Ottman, X2: X-Men United (2003)

With X-Men, director Bryan Singer helped kick off a franchise that still continues to this day, but its 2003 sequel was the one that gave the mutant team its most memorable theme music since the 1990s animated series. John Ottman’s relentless tune plays like a call to action for the X-Men, and its inclusion throughout Singer’s second film in the series made a lasting impression on fans. Case in point, the theme reclaimed its place in the opening credits of 2014 release X-Men: Days of Future Past, a project which marked Singer’s first film in the series in over a decade. By all accounts, it will likely be reprised once again when Singer and Ottman reteam for this year’s X-Men: Apocalypse.