TRON: Ares Promises Dazzling Visuals and AI Drama

It’s been over a decade since TRON: Legacy, and now Disney is reigniting the TRON franchise with TRON: Ares, a new film set in the real world. The sequel has been in development hell for some time, but a new trailer ahead of San Diego Comic-Con shows that the sci-fi movie is ready to show the real world its neon lights.

TRON: Ares arrives helmed by director Joachim Rønning, and while Disney officially restarted development on the film in 2020, some details are staying the same, like its focus on a digital A.I. The character Ares was supposed to show up in the third TRON installment back in the day, and while the main story has shifted from a direct sequel to the 2010 TRON: Legacy to a reboot of its own, Ares has been confirmed to show up in the new film.

Directed by Rønning, TRON: Ares was first announced back in 2010 as a direct sequel to Legacy. The original story reportedly was going to follow Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) as he navigated his father’s (Jeff Bridges) company as he (Flynn) takes over. And for a while, development on the film moved along, but in 2015, Disney canceled the TRON sequel, as the studio saw a lackluster reception for its sci-fi film, Tomorrowland.

Fast forward to 2020, when Disney announced the film, which was then considered to be a reboot rather than a direct continuation of Legacy. While the overall story shifted, it was noted that some elements of Legacy‘s would-be third act were retained, including the introduction of a character, Ares, an A.I. that Disney’s official synopsis says was sent from the Grid into the real world.

The new film has been subject to production setbacks as a result of the pandemic and Hollywood strikes, and recently saw an estimated end to filming. TRON: Ares has a fall 2025 release date set for October 10. Starring Jared Leto as Ares, the film also features Evan Peters as Julian Dillinger and Greta Lee as Eve Kim, Jodie Turner-Smith, Cameron Monaghan, Sarah Desjardins, Hasan Minhaj, Arturo Castro, and Gillian Anderson. Jeff Bridges is set to reprise his role as Kevin Flynn, and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, who compose under the moniker of Nine Inch Nails, are penning the film’s score.

TRON: Ares Teaser Trailer

Ares, a godlike Program that goes against orders, is on a mission in the real world for the first time. TRON: Ares will explore a race against time, blurring the line between the digital world and real life as Ares’ existence and survival challenge what it means to be human.” Here is a recap of what we know so far about TRON: Ares.

New TRON: Ares Trailer Previews Iconic Neon-Lit Action

Ahead of the film’s San Diego Comic-Con panel, Disney has released the first full trailer of TRON: Ares, which is not only a return to its signature neon-lined effects and strobe-light imagery, but also the first look into the conflict of the new installment.

The trailer, which was originally released last April, presented an action-packed tease of TRON: Ares, and the new trailer has not only brought the style in that first teaser, but also more context to the conflict within the film.

TRON: Ares Trailer Shows LED Monitors, Digital Characters

A corporate executive, Julian Dillinger, is standing on a stage with a sea of people at a company event as LED monitors frame the screen. “So much talk of AI and big tech today. Virtual worlds, what are they going to look like? When will we get there? Well folks. We’re not going there. They are coming here.” These are Dillinger’s words, as he is about to meet the world’s “ultimate soldier.”

Enter the Program, Ares. “He’s biblically strong. Lightning fast. Supremely intelligent. And if he is struck down on the battlefield…” Ares suddenly falls backward, as Dillinger’s narration meets reality. “I will simply make you another.”

Dillinger is the new corporate megalomaniac villain of the day, seeing Ares as a means to a new digital frontier, but the film’s trailer might make us question whether or not that is the full story. While he may think Ares is his to command, Ares may not see himself that way.

In the film, Ares is the Program on a mission in the real world for the first time, as he is going against his orders. He is more than meets the eye and is off to find something he is searching for, without knowing exactly what it is. The search for an objective also takes an interesting note from Flynn, who, when Ares seemingly asks him a question in the digital world, asks, “A malfunctioning program who wants to live, why is that?”

The legacy of TRON: Legacy is front and center, while the film has a major sci-fi star in Leto playing against our idea of A.I. with questions, and with Flynn’s help, will explore what it means to be human as Ares’ existence and survival could change it all. TRON: Ares will have a theatrical release on October 10, 2025.