Sam Smith has received his first Oscar nomination for his official James Bond theme tune, Writing's on the Wall. The 23-year-old, who co-wrote the song for Spectre with Jimmy Napes, expressed his gratitude with an amusing photo on Instagram.
"This is my Oscar Nomination face. Unreal. Freaking out. Thank you Academy - Thank You Thank You Thank You," he wrote.
Sam is up against four other nominees – Earned It from Fifty Shades of Grey, Manta Ray from Racing Extinction, Simple Song #3 from Youth and Til It Happens To You from The Hunting Ground.
Sam Smith admitted he was "freaking out" on Instagram
The nominations for this year's Oscars were announced on Thursday by Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs, director Ang Lee and actors Guillermo del Toro and John Krasinski.
The announcement comes just days after Sam and co-writer Jimmy triumphed at the Golden Globes ceremony on Sunday night. The pair walked home with the Best Original Song accolade – a sign that their track is the clear front-runner for the Oscar.
© Photo: Getty ImagesThe Brit said that releasing the new Bond tune was "one of the highlights" of his career
At the winners' press conference, Sam was asked if he was surprised that Thom Yorke of Radiohead had released the band's version of the Spectre theme song last year.
Turning to Jimmy, the Stay With Me singer said, "Who's Thom Yorke?" to which Grammy Award winner Jimmy replied, "Radiohead".
"I was a little bit surprised but I haven't listened to it because I did the Spectre theme song," said Sam, garnering laughs from reporters.
© Photo: Getty ImagesJimmy Napes and Sam co-wrote the song in under half an hour
Radiohead previously revealed that they were asked to write the new Bond song but "it didn't work out".
"Last year we were asked to write a tune for Bond movie Spectre. Yes we were," Thom tweeted on Christmas Day, alongside a link to the track. "It didn't work out... but became something of our own which we love very much. As the year closes we thought you might like to hear it. Merry Christmas. May the force be with you."
Sam's version Writing's on the Wall was the first Bond theme tune to reach number one in the UK singles chart. The song, which received a mixed response from critics, was written in under half an hour.
Sharing a picture of himself on Instagram, Sam wrote: "This is one of the highlights of my career. I am honoured to finally announce that I will be singing the next Bond theme song. I am so excited to be a part of this iconic British legacy and join an incredible line-up of some of my biggest musical inspirations. I hope you all enjoy the song as much as I enjoyed making it."
