Rob Reviews: Tron Ares (2025)

“Music by Nine Inch Nails.” It was those five words in the trailer for Tron: Ares that prompted me to watch not only this movie, but to go back to the beginning to re-watch and review both Tron and Tron: Legacy.

The Plot

The movie begins with news clips as seen within “the digital realm,” catching us up on the fifteen years that have passed since the events of …Legacy. Flynn’s company, ENCOM, and Dillinger Industries continue their technological tug-of-war, each trying to land the next great breakthrough.

On one side, you have Dillinger Industries (the perennial “bad guys” of the franchise). They have created Ares (played by Jared Leto), the ultimate program designed to cross from the digital world into the physical one. As they tell him, Ares is the new “Master Control.”

On the other side is ENCOM and its CEO, Eve (played by Greta Lee). Eve has stumbled upon the “Permanence Code,” something Dillinger desperately needs so Ares can maintain his physical integrity in the real world. Dillinger sends Ares to hunt down Eve and retrieve the code by any means necessary.

However, along the way, Ares becomes self-aware. Learning how expendable he is to his creators, he begins to seek the code for his own survival. While the story is set mostly in “the real world,” there are a few trips back and forth to The Grid. Original star Jeff Bridges makes a brief, ethereal cameo as a version of Kevin Flynn to aid Ares in his quest and help save Eve.

My take

Ares was considered a box office disappointment, but I think this is largely due to the “blockbuster fatigue” of modern Hollywood. The current strategy seems to be pumping more and more money into established IPs in the hopes of a guaranteed profit, which often backfires. There were rumors that Disney was disappointed with Leto as a leading man, but I actually thought he was solid—the character is somewhat wooden by design; he’s a program learning to be human, after all.

While the Nine Inch Nails score was the main draw for me, I have to say the movie often feels like a two-hour music video. It’s as if Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross handed an album to Disney and they decided, “Hey, let’s make a movie around this.” When the director (Joachim Rønning) finally turns the volume down and lets the characters speak for themselves, Ares actually shines.

The Tron trilogy remains as relevant as ever. Creating a digital world, surviving it, and watching digital characters become flesh and blood is a fascinatng arc. As AI continues to advance at staggering rates, the human dilemmas presented here don’t feel like sci-fi anymore—they feel like tomorrow’s headlines.

FINAL VERDICT

Despite its limited theatrical run, it’s no accident that I didn’t rush to the theater for this one. Hollywood seems hell-bent on safe bets rather than new ideas. However, as a fan of the franchise, it’s always fun to check back in on the Grid.

Recommended for fans of the franchise or Nine Inch Nails die-hards, but don’t break your back trying to find it.

Tron Ares is currently streaming on Disney+.

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