Summary
Fans of the iconic, influential sci-fi franchiseTronwerefinally treated to a trailer for the long-gestating third entryin the series,Tron Ares.But for many, this trailer split opinions due to the omission of key characters and a significant departure from the previously floated story of the previously canceled sequel,Tron: Ascension.
Following the release ofTron: Legacyback in December 2010 — almost thirty years after Steven Lisberger’s original in 1982 — the second installment became a cult hit but not a critical success, grossing $400 million at the box office with an original $170 million budget. However, plans for a third surfaced five years later. The cast and crew teased an intriguing plot followingTron:Legacycharacters Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) and Quorra (Olivia Wilde). However, Disney shelved this project, withTron: Aresemerging from the ashes a whole 15 yearsafterTron: Legacy’s release.
So what happened to the original plans forTron: Ascension?How did the sequel starring Olivia Wilde and Garrett Hedlund turn into a Jared Leto-centric outing? With only Jeff Bridges confirmed to return, it appears thatTron: Aresis more of a soft reboot for the franchise than a direct sequel to the 2010 installment. Read on to find out what happened toTron: Ascension.
What Was the Plot for Tron: Ascension?
Quorra & Sam Flynn’s Journey in the “Real World”
The official plot was never released during pre-production. However, details revealed in interviews with director Joseph Kosinski,Tron Legacyscreenwriters Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis, andTron Legacystar Olivia Wilde paint an intriguing picture for the scrapped third installment.
The direct sequel toTron: Legacywas set to follow Sam Flynn and Quorrain the real world following their escape from Clu’s clutches in the Grid. The conclusion of the 2010 movie established Sam’s intent on taking back control of ENCOM, while introducing the former “isomorphic algorithm” being, Quorra (now transformed into flesh and blood), to the real world. The third entry would focus on the evolution of Olivia Wilde’s unique character.
Described as an “invasion movie” by Kosinski, the director revealed inan interview with ColliderthatAscensionwould have explored the concept of characters from The Grid and the real world traveling between both realms. Most interestingly, the film would have explored Quorra’s journey as the first “digital-human hybrid"in the real worldas she tries to figure out where she fits in, raising the question about which realm she truly belongs in. Actor Olivia Wilde also shared in aninterview with Colliderhow excited she was to explore the character in a new territory and realm:
“I think it’s an interesting concept. I’m fascinated by all the discussions of AI, and especially today and now, with virtual reality becoming something that’s like a personal device, I think it’s the right time to tell this story.”
Kosinski also outlined the three-act structure in the Collider interview. The first act was set to take place in the real world (presumably picking up with Sam and Quorra) before returning to the world of TRON, “or multiple worlds of TRON” in the second act. The closing third act then switched the action back to the real world, presumably with digital characters — such as the AI character Ares — “invading” the real world.
Tron: Legacy,the follow-up short film “Tron: The Next Day” and other bonus scenestease a number of plot threads, such as Sam returning to build a better Encom, establishing Bruce Boxleitner’s Alan Bradley as Encom’s executive. Another thread teased Cillian Murphy’s Edward Dillinger Jr. — son of David Warner’s Edward Dillinger and the current head of Encom’s software development team — as the next potential human antagonist. One Blu-ray Easter egg featured the character addressing a secret program as “Dad.”
Who Was Lined Up To Star In Tron: Ascension?
Along with returningTron: Legacydirector Joseph Kosinski,who was enlisted for directing duties, the followingLegacycast members were reportedly attached to be returning:
TheHollywood Reporterfirst confirmed that Wilde and Hedlund were reprising their characters for the third installment back in April 2015. Boxleitner also confirmed his involvement,heavily implyingthat Cillian Murphy’s Dillinger would also be involved in the sequel, stating:
“Let’s just say… Cillian Murphy doesn’t do cameos.”
According toMovieWeb,Tron Legacyscreenwriters Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis also implied that Jeff Bridges would also be returning, with the cryptic hint:
“I would say the definition of life and death in the digital realm […] will be explored in the sequel!”
What Happened to Tron: Ascension?
With plans to shoot infall 2015 in Vancouver, British Columbia, it appeared that Disney was confident with theLegacysequel. However, the studio reportedly became spooked by the $180 millionTomorrowland’s poor opening weekend box office results, and decided to scrapTron: Ascensionthe following month.
Speaking on MTV’sHappy Sad Confusedpodcast, star Garrett Hedlund confirmed that the threequel was shelved for these reasons, along with Disney funneling their investmentstowards Marvel and Star Wars franchise blockbusters:
“When the next TRON was supposed to start — we were greenlit and ready to go — and then [Disney] had troubles with how Tomorrowland did. And I think they asked them to give them like a hundred reasons why they should do [TRON 3].”
Tron: Ascension’s Evolution To Tron: Ares
Following the official announcement that the House of Mouse wasn’t moving ahead withTron: Ascensionin 2015, it appeared that the studio was floating the idea of re-usingmajor elements from theAscensionscript. They began eyeing Jared Leto as the lead character Ares two years later in 2017.
Following a failed start with director Garth Davis back in 2020, fast-forward three years and Disneyfinally confirmedthat they would be moving ahead with the third installment. They once again announced Jared Leto as the main lead and confirmed a completed script from Jesse Wigutow and Jack Thorne, with talks underway withdirector Joachim Rønning (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales) to take the helm.
It took three further years to announce additional casting. Evan Peters' official announcement took place in June 2023, followed by the addition ofPast Lives' breakout star Greta Lee and Jodie Turner-Smith in July 2023. However, perhaps the biggest announcement for fans of the franchise wasthe revealthat Nine Inch Nails was to score the film,following Daft Punk’s genre-defying score inTron: Legacy.Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (Challengers,The Social Network) were officially announced at D23 in 2024.
The project has taken astaggering fifteen years to come to fruition. Whether it would be worth the wait. only time will tell.
The Major Changes To The Tron: Ascension Script In Tron: Ares
The major change from the canceledTron: Ascensionstory is the shift from Quorra and Sam Flynn’s journey to Jared Leto’s mysterious, highly sophisticated Program, Ares. The official synopsis spotlights how Leto’s characteris sent from the digital world into the real world on a “dangerous mission”.
This POV change from Quorra to Ares is disappointing on multiple fronts, primarily because Quorra is such an interesting and nuanced character. She’s literally the first “digital-human hybrid” in the real world, which would have given the story huge scope to explore the key themes. Plus, to lose a female-led sci-fi movie feels like a step back for the genre and the studio.
Switching direction away from the threads set up in the wake ofTron: Legacyalso feels like a huge missed opportunity. Jeff Bridges is the sole connective tissue to previous installments, as he’s the only legacy character from the franchise to feature in the trailer. This is confusing in its own right, considering his character seemingly sacrificed himself to take out CLU so Sam and Quorra could escape at the end ofTron: Legacy. Is his brief voice in the trailer either Kevin Flynn or a digital version of CLU?
Where are the key characters fromTron:Legacy,such as Edward Dillinger Jr. and Alan Bradley/heroic Tron? It appears that Evan Peters has taken over the Dillinger name as Julian Dillinger, perhaps as Edward’s younger brother, while Gillian Anderson’s new character seems to be the focus of the Encom board. Unless Disney is hiding casting announcements or huge cameos from promotional trailers and assets, it doesn’t appear that the majority of the cast will feature in the third outing.
Iconic franchise actor Bruce Boxleitnerhas also stated that he’s walked away from the project, stating in an interview withSlashFilmin 2015 that, due to the stop-start nature of the long-gestating project, he’s:
[…] done with it. I’ve moved on. I hate to say that, but it’s been too up and down for me. To have aTronsequel without the iconic Tron all feels rather wrong.
It looks like manyTron: Legacyfans share a similar feeling regarding theswitch from Sam and Quorra to Ares. Many echoed their disappointment on social media following the release of the firstTron: Arestrailer:
WhetherTron: Areswill be a success with long-running fans of the franchise, along with a box office hit, remains to be seen. But despite the outstanding visuals of the trailer andthe Nine Inch Nails soundtrack, there aren’t a lot of positives going for the film. Despite the controversial casting and significant departures from the mainTron: Ascensionstory, hopefully the third installment will eventually do the franchise justice.
Tron: Aresis scheduled to be released in theaters on July 23, 2025.
