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‘Tron: Ares’ skids off the Grid as aspects of the movie were left untouched

Though ‘Tron: Ares’ is visually and audibly pleasing, the film lacks depth

Ananda Singh • October 25, 2025

Super-soldier AI program Ares is materialized into the human world along with large military vehicles. | Photo courtesy of Disney+

After a 15-year hiatus since the release of sci-fi film “Tron: Legacy,” Disney released “Tron: Ares” on Friday, Oct. 10, making it the third installment of the “Tron” franchise. Because the film is set 15 years after the events in “Tron: Legacy,” a new generation of characters is introduced while still referencing past storylines throughout the movie, such as former ENCOM CEO Kevin Flynn and his creation of the original Grid — a digital world with programs and game simulations.

In an interview with Polygon, Jared Leto, who played Ares and served as the film’s executive producer, expressed his love for the franchise and explained how he pushed for a third installment to be made. Because Disney scrapped the initial third installment “Tron: Ascension” in 2015, Leto pitched the new film to surround his character Ares, ultimately becoming the foundation to create the film.

Ares is a new super-soldier AI program created by Julian Dillinger, played by Evan Peters, the CEO of ENCOM’s long-time competitor Dillinger Systems, primarily focused on creating mass weapons of destruction for the military. Ares and his second-in-command Athena, played by Jodie Tuner-Smith, are dispatched from Dillinger’s Grid to obtain a Flynn’s permanence code, needed for programs to survive permanently in the real world, before the current ENCOM CEO Eve Kim, played by Greta Lee, retrieves it. After questioning Dillinger and realizing his ill intentions, Ares breaks from the super-soldier hypnosis and sides with ENCOM and Kim, prompting Athena and Dillinger to chase after them. “Tron: Ares” successfully establishes an ominous and exhilarating mood throughout the entirety of the film, keeping audiences’ eyes glued to the screen at all times. This atmosphere is especially intense as the signature blue tones from past installments, representing Flynn’s Grid, are replaced by a striking black and red color palette, which exceptionally villainizes Dillinger’s Grid and sets the film up with a lot of potential. Since “Tron: Ares” focuses on stabilizing the lives of AI programs, it is relevantly aligned with the continuous rise of AI in our current cyberspace, as evident in Ares as he slowly humanizes and develops a relationship with Kim. As “Tron: Ares” marks the first time AI programs transport from the Grid to the human world in the franchise, high-resolution CGI seamlessly brings iconic Grid elements into the real world, like the neon-lit Lightcycles used to race other programs. For example, the bright red lightning from the Grid elements reflects onto human environments, integrating the digital and human world into one. The programs also steer away from a standard robotic appearance and appear more human-like, making it harder to distinguish between what is computer-generated and what is not. Additionally, the film is accompanied by a fitting score with cyber-funk and synth-heavy tracks, produced by industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, known for their dark and angsty music themes. The soundtrack further emphasizes the futuristic and supernatural characteristics of the digital world and adds to the eeriness of Dillinger’s Grid with gritty and distorted songs, complementing the fight and race scenes in the film immersively. However, even though the movie is visually and audibly engaging from start to finish, the plot is predictable and lackluster, ultimately leading to components of the movie being left underdeveloped. For example, the movie could have paid better homage to the classic Lightcycle chases and disc fights from the previous films, as a greater amount of these elements with more substance would have significantly amplified the action-side of the film. Though the suspense-inducing score reels audiences into the few disc fights in the film, the initial excitement of the scenes dwindles due to poor filming. With the camera placed far from the actors and widely shot, a lack of impact sound effects and half-baked choreography prevented audiences from being fully immersed in these scenes. <figure id="attachment_133918" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-133918" style="width: 600px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-133918" src="https://elestoque.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/tron-motorcycle-600x400.webp" alt="" width="600" height="400" srcset="https://elestoque.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/tron-motorcycle-600x400.webp 600w, https://elestoque.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/tron-motorcycle-768x512.webp 768w, https://elestoque.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/tron-motorcycle-300x200.webp 300w, https://elestoque.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/tron-motorcycle.webp 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-133918" class="wp-caption-text">After entering the human world, Ares chases Kim on his red Lightcycle. | Photo courtesy of Disney</figcaption></figure> Moreover, Ares becomes an ally to Kim early in the film and tension builds between the two throughout, as Ares prioritizes her safety and subtly flirts with her. But despite this evolving relationship being a core focus of the film, it disappointingly fizzles out due to a rushed ending. After Ares defeats Dillinger’s programs, he lives in Mexico and sends letters to Kim about his life, leaving his character development vague and incomplete. However, the mid-credits scene perfectly sets up a fourth installment to be made, as Dillinger digitizes himself into his damaged Grid in order to escape from the authorities. There, he finds an identity disc that transforms him into his grandfather Sark, the antagonist of the first “Tron” movie. While “Tron: Ares” committed to bringing Dillinger’s digital world to real life with sharp CGI and a well-crafted score, the film’s simple plot lacked action and adventure — needed components for “Tron: Ares” to be considered a success. RATING: 3/5

Ares is a new super-soldier AI program created by Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), the CEO of ENCOM’s long-time competitor Dillinger Systems, primarily focused on creating mass weapons of destruction for the military. Ares and his second-in-command, Athena (Jodie Turner-Smith), are dispatched from Dillinger’s Grid to obtain Flynn’s permanence code. Needed for programs to survive permanently in the real world, chaos ensues as the Dillinger programs and current ENCOM CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) race to find it. After questioning Dillinger and realizing his ill intentions, Ares breaks from the super-soldier hypnosis and sides with ENCOM and Kim, prompting Athena and Dillinger to chase after them.

“Tron: Ares” successfully establishes an ominous and exhilarating mood throughout the entirety of the film, keeping audiences’ eyes glued to the screen at all times. This atmosphere is especially intense as the signature blue tones from past installments, representing Flynn’s Grid, are replaced by a striking black and red color palette, which exceptionally villainizes Dillinger’s Grid and sets the film up with a lot of potential.

Since “Tron: Ares” focuses on stabilizing the lives of AI programs, it is relevantly aligned with the continuous rise of AI in our current cyberspace, as evident in Ares as he slowly humanizes and develops a relationship with Kim. As “Tron: Ares” marks the first time AI programs transport from the Grid to the human world in the franchise, high-resolution CGI seamlessly brings iconic Grid elements into the real world, like the neon-lit Lightcycles used to race other programs. For example, the bright red lightning from the Grid elements reflects onto human environments, integrating the digital and human world into one. The programs also steer away from a standard robotic appearance and appear more human-like, making it harder to distinguish between what is computer-generated and what is not.

Additionally, the film is accompanied by a fitting score with cyber-funk and synth-heavy tracks, produced by industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, known for their dark and angsty music themes. The soundtrack further emphasizes the futuristic and supernatural characteristics of the digital world and adds to the eeriness of Dillinger’s Grid with gritty and distorted songs, complementing the fight and race scenes in the film immersively.

However, even though the movie is visually and audibly engaging from start to finish, the plot is predictable and lackluster, ultimately leading to components of the movie being left underdeveloped. For example, the movie could have paid better homage to the classic Lightcycle chases and disc fights from the previous films, as a greater amount of these elements with more substance would have significantly amplified the action-side of the film. Though the suspense-inducing score reels audiences into the few disc fights in the film, the initial excitement of the scenes dwindles due to poor filming. With the camera placed far from the actors and widely shot, a lack of impact sound effects and half-baked choreography prevented audiences from being fully immersed in these scenes.

After entering the human world, Ares chases Kim on his red Lightcycle through Center City. | Photo courtesy of Disney

Moreover, Ares becomes an ally to Kim early in the film and tension builds between the two throughout, as Ares prioritizes her safety and subtly flirts with her. But despite this evolving relationship being a core focus of the film, it disappointingly fizzles out due to a rushed ending. After Ares defeats Dillinger’s programs, he lives in Mexico and sends letters to Kim about his life, leaving his character development vague and incomplete. However, the mid-credits scene perfectly sets up a fourth installment to be made, as Dillinger digitizes himself into his damaged Grid in order to escape from the authorities. There, he finds an identity disc that transforms him into his grandfather Sark, the antagonist of the first “Tron” movie.

While “Tron: Ares” committed to bringing Dillinger’s digital world to real life with sharp CGI and a well-crafted score, the film’s simple plot lacked action and adventure — crucial components for “Tron: Ares” to be considered a success.

RATING: 3/5

About the Contributor

Ananda Singh, Sports Editor

Ananda Singh is currently a senior and Sports Editor for El Estoque. Aside from being a competitive dancer, she likes to listen to music, hangout with friends and visit new places.