The kids might not remember, but \u201cTron\u201d<\/a> was once one of Disney\u2019s most innovative projects, with big ideas, eye-popping visuals and seriously rad lightcycles that a generation thought might be awesome to ride in the near future.<\/p>\n Now, the best thing you can say about the flagging sci-fi franchise is it sounds pretty cool.<\/p>\n \u201cTron: Ares\u201d<\/a> (rated \u2605\u2605 out of four; rated PG-13; in theaters Oct. 10<\/a>) is a light-up armored shell of its former self, an aggressively unremarkable combo of \u201cPinocchio,\u201d \u201cFrankenstein\u201d and generic disaster flick with Jared Leto<\/a> as a exceedingly dull digital warrior. Beat-thumping techno songs and score by Nine Inch Nails help it all go down easier, as does OG \u201cTron\u201d guy Jeff Bridges<\/a> dude-ing up a few scenes, but traveling to that nifty high-tech landscape in this third “Tron” outing has become a chore rather than a pleasure.<\/p>\n Join our Watch Party! <\/strong>Sign up to receive USA TODAY’s movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n Ares (Jared Leto, center) gets an assist in the real world from ENCOM CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) and her assistant Seth (Arturo Castro) in “Tron: Ares.”<\/p>\n One would think with artificial intelligence being on everyone\u2019s mind, a new \u201cTron\u201d might be the vehicle to explore that theme in a nuanced albeit entertaining fashion. Nah, \u201cAres\u201d botches that, too, starting with a \u201cdigitized\u201d exposition dump to get everyone up to speed on what you need to know. (AI Robin Roberts even pops up for a little Disney synergy.)<\/p>\n Two tech companies, Dillinger Systems and ENCOM, are racing to see who can take the next step in using AI to change the world. And even if you don\u2019t know a darn thing about \u201cTron\u201d mythology, they make the different sides clear: ENCOM CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) creates an orange tree with the use of technology, while rival honcho Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters) harnesses AI to make a war machine. One’s about giving life, the other about destruction.<\/p>\n Neither of these corporations can keep a physical AI creation from dissolving into grainy black bits in 29 minutes. So when Eve cracks the Permanence Code (which makes them, yes, permanent) by using an old computer once owned by former ENCOM CEO Kevin Flynn (Bridges), Dillinger deploys soldiers from the digital Grid \u2013 including his Master Control main man, Ares (Leto) \u2013 to nab it from her.<\/p>\n Ares, though, is a malfunctioning program and yearns to be a real boy. When Eve winds up blasted into the digital world of the Grid, they strike a deal: If Ares gets her back home, she’ll help him become flesh and blood. But as soon as they return, a villainous armed force from the Grid \u2013\u00a0including a ginormous, flying tank-like Recognizer \u2013 shows up to start wreaking havoc on the real world.<\/p>\n Ares (Jared Leto, left) meets Flynn (Jeff Bridges) in the Grid in “Tron: Ares.”<\/p>\n Director Joachim R\u00f8nning\u2019s adventure has all the trappings that a \u201cTron\u201d fan would want, from snazzy visuals like light-up discs and Ares’ surf-speeder contraption to passing references to previous films. None of them really assist a story that\u2019s straight up nonsensical, even if you\u2019re a hardcore Gen Xer with a “Flynn Lives” shirt who agrees with Ares that Depeche Mode is totally better than Mozart. It\u2019d be one thing if there were so many whiz-bang sequences to make you forgive the odd plot point, but instead you\u2019re just left wondering things like how a laser can just make a human being.<\/p>\n As Ares, Leto weaves wildly between AI-brained fighter and fish-out-of-water man-child. Lee does her best with what she\u2019s given, though Eve is one of many underdeveloped characters. Peters\u2019 villain isn\u2019t given much to do other than type a whole bunch \u2013 it\u2019s still more than Gillian Anderson (who plays Julian\u2019s somewhat more morally righteous mom) has. And Bridges is parachuted in for a little while to remind us all that, yeah, \u201cTron\u201d used to rule.<\/p>\n 1<\/span> of 22<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n The stars were out at the world premiere of Disney’s “Tron: Ares.”<\/a> Scroll through for a look at all the celebrities who hit the red carpet at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood, California, on Oct. 6, 2025.<\/p>\n From left: Jodie Turner-Smith, Jared Leto<\/a>, Jeff Bridges, Greta Lee<\/a>, Hasan Minhaj and Sarah Desjardins attend the premiere. Leto is the latest A-list newcomer to Disney’s sci-fi action franchise. He plays the title program, a digital warrior from the Grid sent to the real world, while Lee is a programmer targeted by high-tech antagonists. OG “Tron” star Jeff Bridges returns as Flynn in a sci-fi action flick fueled by Nine Inch Nails songs. Turner-Smith plays Athena and Minhaj plays Ajay Singh.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Somehow over the years, these movies have turned into better albums than they are films. The 2010 sequel \u201cTron: Legacy\u201d was an OK flick with a fantastic Daft Punk soundtrack. \u201cAres\u201d offers up a forgettable threequel with some Nine Inch Nails that\u2019ll have you jamming in your theater seat while what looks like a Godzilla-sized game of \u201cSpace Invaders\u201d unfolds over a nightly cityscape.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, the rest of the movie isn\u2019t as inspired as Trent Reznor and friends.<\/p>\n “Tron: Ares,” starring Jared Leto, Greta Lee and Jeff Bridges, opens in theaters Oct. 10. It is rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association<\/a> “for violence\/action.”<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
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Jodie Turner-Smith, Greta Lee stun at Disney’s ‘Tron: Ares’ movie premiere in Los Angeles<\/h2>\n
How to watch ‘Tron: Ares’<\/h2>\n