Is 'Tron 4' happening? Disney drops major update on sci-fi franchise after 'Ares' debacle
'Tron: Ares' becoming a box-office bomb has now left the franchise's future in dire straits. The Jared Leto-starrer served as a standalone sequel to 'Tron: Legacy' (2010), and follows a state-of-the-art program sent from the digital world to the real one on a mission. While the film received relatively better praise than 'Legacy', it grossed less than the previous film at the box office.
'Ares' rough BO run will also likely quash all hopes of another 'Tron' film on the big screen. Per sources talking to THR, Disney is likely to retire 'Tron' from the cinemas, making 'Ares' post-credit scene obsolete. This comes as a major dampener after both films set massive expectations from fans. The film was also panned for its acting and plotline.
“In a world where Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, and Benedict Cumberbatch are having a hard time getting lead roles, why would you even go to a person who can’t open a movie and who has question marks around him as a person,” remarked a top talent manager partner told the outlet. Another insider added, "You could have had Ryan Gosling, but it wasn’t going to work. No one asked for this reboot. If you say, ‘Tron: Ares is good, we just needed a different actor,’ you’re deluding yourself."
The official synopsis of the Disney film reads: "'Tron: Ares' follows a highly sophisticated program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind’s first encounter with AI beings."
Earlier, producer Justin Springer spoke about the 15-year wait between 'Legacy' and 'Ares' during his chat with Comicbook.com. "All the way back to Legacy, I was talking to Steven Lisberger, the creator of Tron, about what he was thinking when he came up with the idea of Tron,” Springer said.
"And he was saying, in the late ’70s and early ’80s, there was an obsession with aliens, and we kept feeling like we were close to this first encounter. And he was like, I always, he was living around MIT, and there was a lot of computer, new technology being developed on campus there…He said, ‘I started thinking about what if intelligent life didn’t come from outer space, but it came from inside the machine, and what if we created it, and what would that be like?’ And I thought, that’s a great concept for a movie."
'Tron: Ares' is currently streaming on Disney+
