Few were clamouring for a third instalment in Disney’s Tron franchise, but here it is nonetheless.
Following in the footsteps of the Shonky but now cult 1982 original, and the slightly more successful 2010 Joseph Kosinski sequel Tron:Legacy, Tron:Ares sees Hollywood Marmite man Jared Leto take the lead as Ares, the embodiment of a new Master Control Program sent to the real world to do the bidding of nefarious tech bro Julian Dillinger, Grandson of the originals big bad Edward Dillinger.
Evan Peters takes on that role and faces up against rival Eve Kim (Greta Lee) the new CEO of Encom, the company Jeff Bridges character Kevin Flynn founded in the first film. Both tech companies are desperately seeking the permanence code, something that will enable their digital creations, like Leto’s Ares, to stay alive in the real world for longer than 29 minutes.
Norwegian director Joachim Rønning takes the helm, having previously shepherded the likes of Pirates of the Caribbean 5 and Maleficent 2 to the screen, and he’s given an impressive cast to work with. On top of the previously mentioned Leto, Lee and Peters, we get X-files mainstay Gillian Anderson as Dillinger’s mother, Jodie Turner-Smith as Ares right-hand woman Athena and a fan pleasing appearance from Jeff Bridges, returning as Kevin Flynn. On top of this, the film is soundtracked with brand new songs from Nine Inch Nails. Members Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross are no strangers to movies, having scored films for the likes of David Fincher, Sam Mendes and Luca Guadagnino, but this is the first time they’ve officially used their band name to do so.
With all these exciting elements in place, it’s a shame that they don’t quite come together as a coherent whole.
The script from Jesse Wigutow and Danny DiGilio is largely to blame. It’s not bad per se, just really generic and derivative. By moving away from the computer grid and setting the bulk of the story in the real world, the film loses the charm that made Tron unique in the first place.
The talented cast struggle to lift the material, Greta Lee who was so good in Celine Song’s Romantic drama Past Lives, is completely miscast as the head of Encom, while the much maligned Leto plays Ares as an emotionless digital Jesus, remaining expressionless even when his character is supposed to be discovering human emotions.
There is still visual flare here. The film is very impressive to look at, and the fantastic Nine Inch Nails score compliments the futuristic aesthetic perfectly. There’s even a few entertaining throwback moments, particularly when Ares ventures into an 80’s style retro Tron World. To say the film is completely without merit would be over stating it, but the whole thing feels a bit like a big budget Music Video.
As a Sc-fi blockbuster it’s a largely sterile and empty affair and likely won’t be remembered for long by anyone other than the Tron hardcore.
⭐️⭐️
Paul Steward
16/10/25