"Writing's on the Wall" is a song by the English singer Sam Smith, written for the release of the 2015 James Bond film Spectre. The song was released as a digital download on 25 September 2015. The song was written by Smith and Jimmy Napes, and produced by the latter alongside Steve Fitzmaurice and Disclosure.
"Writing's on the Wall" received mixed reviews from critics, some comparing it unfavourably to previous Bond theme songs. The mixed reception to the song led to Shirley Bassey trending on Twitter on the day it was released. Despite this, the single became the first Bond movie theme to reach number one in the UK singles chart. It also reached the top 10 in a few other European countries, but unlike other James Bond film themes, it was not as successful outside Europe, only peaking at number 43 on the Canadian Hot 100 and in Australia and number 71 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Only the instrumental version of the song appeared on the film's official soundtrack album. The song won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song at the 73rd Golden Globe Awards and the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 88th Academy Awards, making it the second consecutive Bond theme to win (after "Skyfall" by Adele from the film of the same name in 2012).
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Background and composition
"Writing's on the Wall" was co-written by Sam Smith and Jimmy Napes in a single session: they wrote it in under half an hour and quickly recorded a demo. They were so pleased with Smith's vocal performance that they used it on the final release. On 8 September 2015, Sam Smith announced that they were singing the song for the James Bond film Spectre. They described performing the theme as "one of the highlights of my career". The English band Radiohead also composed a song for the film, "Spectre", which went unused, and Lana Del Rey unsuccessfully submitted a song titled "24" – instead, she eventually contributed "First Light" to the video game 007 First Light (2026).
The song is written in the key of F minor with a tempo of 66 beats per minute (Larghetto). Smith's vocals range from A
♭3 to D♭5. Smith said it was "horrible to sing" as the notes are "just so high".
Critical reception
"Writing's on the Wall" received a mixed response from critics.
Alexis Petridis of The Guardian wrote that the song attempted to capture the mood of Adele's "Skyfall", but "doesn't feel anywhere near as striking [...] the chances of it joining the pantheon of Bond themes that anyone with even a passing interest in pop music can hum seem pretty slender". Chris Willman of Variety similarly noted the song was "unbecoming of a Bond movie", comparing it negatively to Adele's "Skyfall" from the previous 2012 Bond installment and Billie Eilish's "No Time to Die" from the subsequent 2021 Bond film of the same name. He ranked the song as the worst James Bond theme song.
Lewis Corner of Digital Spy rated it three out of five stars.
Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph called the song a "monster Bond ballad", stating, "(The song) is very, very slow and surprisingly restrained, at times floating by on resonant piano notes, the faintest brush stroke of orchestra, with all the focus on Smith's intense, tremulous vocal, rising with controlled pace and tension to an audacious chorus pay-off".
Chris DeVille of Stereogum felt it was inferior to Radiohead's rejected song.
Commercial performance
In the United Kingdom, "Writing's on the Wall" became the first James Bond theme to reach number one, on the issue dated 8 October 2015. The previous highest-charting Bond themes were Adele's "Skyfall" and Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill" from the 1985 film of the same name, which both reached number two. It also became Smith's fifth UK number-one single within two years. The song spent a total of 16 consecutive weeks in the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, "Writing's on the Wall" debuted and peaked at number 71 on the Billboard Hot 100, compared to the previous Bond song, "Skyfall", which debuted at number 8 in October 2012. On the Canadian Hot 100, the song debuted at and peaked number 43. In Australia, the song performed moderately, debuting at number 44, and later peaking at number 43, but on the Irish Singles Chart, the song was a much bigger hit, debuting and peaking at number 9. The song has also charted in several other European countries though to a far lesser degree than its predecessor.
Credits and personnel
Recording and management
Recorded at RAK Studios, Abbey Road Studios and The Pierce Rooms (London, England)
Mixed at The Pierce Rooms (London, England)
Mastered at Sterling Sound (New York City, New York)
Cover photograph by Rankin
Artwork and design by Studio Moross
Published by Naughty Words Ltd. / Stellar Songs Ltd. / Sony/ATV Music Publishing / Salli Isaak Songs Limited / Universal Music Publishing Limited
Personnel