It’s been a good while since Tron fans last plugged into the Grid. When Tron: Ares hits cinemas next year, it’ll mark 15 years since Tron: Legacy re
It’s been a good while since Tron fans last plugged into the Grid. When Tron: Ares hits cinemas next year, it’ll mark 15 years since Tron: Legacy revived the 1982 digital-game sci-fi story for a modern generation. And this time, it’s about to reinvent Tron all over again – less a direct sequel to the previous films than the start of something modern, imbued with the bio-digital jazz of all that came before. That includes a fresh protagonist in Jared Leto’s Ares – a program who makes the leap from the Grid to the real world – and a modern soundscape courtesy of Nine Inch Nails, taking their cues from Daft Punk’s Legacy soundtrack.
As director Joachim Rønning tells Empire, the shift from Daft Punk to Nine Inch Nails is indicative of where Ares is taking us. “With Nine Inch Nails making the music, this instalment will be a little grittier, a little bit more industrial,” the filmmaker explains. “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 that we are creating.”
If that indicates something of a downward spiral into darker territory, be assured that – among all the AI-vs-reality conflicts – the core of Ares will remain human after all. “What I always look for in any story is a strong emotional core,” says Rønning. “This film will probably be more emotional than people are expecting. It’s about the cost of being human.” Let the game begin.
Read more about Tron: Ares in Empire’s Ultimate 2025 Preview, led by Andor Season 2 – in the January 2025 issue. Pre-order a copy online here. Tron: Ares comes to UK cinemas from 10 October.
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