The ‘TRON’ franchise continues 15 years after Joseph Kosinski’s ‘TRON: Legacy, returning this fall with the arrival of ‘TRON: Ares’ after a long hiatus.
This time the director is Joachim Rønning, and the story takes a sharp turn away from ‘The Grid’. ‘TRON: Ares’ follows a program that ventures into the real world, creating a grittier and more realistic addition to the ‘TRON’ universe.
Daft Punk, who created the widely acclaimed all-electronic soundtrack for ‘TRON: Legacy’, were initially expected to return for this installment. However, the filmmakers chose to collaborate with beloved rock innovators Nine Inch Nails. Founding members and Oscar-winning composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross have taken on the task of composing the new soundtrack.
Rønning spoke to Empire about the highly anticipated sequel and said, “With Nine Inch Nails making the music, this installment will be a little grittier, a little bit more industrial,” said Rønning. “It’s been important for me to contrast ‘The Grid’ and the real world. In that sense, Nine Inch Nails lends itself perfectly into this new ‘Tron’ world we are creating.”
The director also emphasized that the grounded nature of the film and its gritty music will help deliver an intensely human story. “What I always look for in any story is a strong emotional core,” he said. “This film will probably be more emotional than people are expecting. It’s about the cost of being human.”
Details about ‘TRON: Ares’ remain scarce. The main character, Ares, is a program that escapes ‘The Grid’ and ventures into the real world, taking the franchise into uncharted territory.
‘TRON: Ares’ stars Jared Leto (Suicide Squad), Greta Lee (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse), Evan Peters (X-Men: Days of Future Past), Hasan Minhaj (Haunted Mansion), Jodie Turner-Smith (Star Wars: The Acolyte), Arturo Castro (Narcos), Cameron Monaghan (Gotham), and Gillian Anderson (The X-Files). Sean Bailey (TRON: Legacy), Jeffrey Silver (The Little Mermaid), Justin Springer (Oblivion), Emma Ludbrook (Morbius), Leto, and original TRON writer-director Steven Lisberger are the producers, with Russell Allen (Disney’s The Lion King and Snow White re-imaginings) on board as executive producer.
