Back in 1982, Tron took cinema to a whole new dimension. The first film to use computer-generated effects was a marvel to behold, as we were taken from the real world into the land of video games, where light cycles raced around a grid, even though the computer they used had only 2 MB of memory. Since then, we have had Tron: Legacy, a sequel we didn’t ask for, 28 years after the original, and now Tron: Ares, a sequel to a sequel that has little to do with the previous movie. It’s one we definitely didn’t ask for and wished we never got.

Having created 3D computer-generated warriors for the real world, Dillinger CEO Julian Dillinger is desperate to find a programme that will keep his creation stable for longer than 29 minutes. Meanwhile, the rival company, led by Eve Kim, has discovered the programme hidden in the files belonging to Kevin Flynn, the hacker who ended up living in the digital world. Determined to get the programme from her, Dillinger uses his master programme, Ares, to find the file, but this programme has grown a conscience.

Bringing the Tron story up to date might seem like a good idea, especially when several generations don’t even know what Tron is. Still, the main issue, as with the original sequel, is that Tron was of its time, and we have moved on from the 8-bit computer games of Atari and Sinclair.

Getting lost in a world that we had only just discovered made the original such an exceptional experience. We had just mastered the likes of Space Invaders, and technology was heading down a different road, so watching multi-coloured gaming where humans were at the heart was almost mind-blowing. Watching it now is a pastiche and incredibly dated. So, where do you go with the basic premise? Bring the inside out. However, that then loses the magic because we all know what the outside world looks like, and we’d be more interested in cyberspace.

Having the light cycles roaming around the streets lacks the power they had in the computer world. In that case, the story needs to be strong. Not so. In fact, this is a muddled mess of corporate sabotage and cheating that is less exciting than you think. It all ends up being a flashy, brightly coloured yet uninspiring bore.

How do you distract from the messiness of the story and effects? You get Nine Inch Nails to produce the soundtrack. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross have done a fantastic job, and like Daft Punk in the previous film, they lift the whole thing from just being another effect-laden movie. It’s like watching an extended promo for the new NIN album.

Maybe the performances will help? Actually, no. Greta Lee, so good in Past Lives, is given the damsel in distress role of Eve Kim and finds it hard to lift it above that of a woman on the run. Evan Peters as Dillinger hams it up like all good screen villains, and even Gillian Anderson, although adding class, cannot liven things up as Dillinger’s more moral mother. Jeff Bridges makes a cameo as Kevin Flynn, the only star to appear in all three movies, and he is becoming more like the Dude from The Big Lebowski in every film. That leaves us with Jared Leto as Ares, and while it’s not a stretch for his acting skills, it’s probably his least annoying performance. Only Queen and Slim star Jodie Turner-Smith, as a fellow computer warrior, brings a sense of fun to her otherwise flat character.

Why Disney keeps returning to a franchise that was never one before is a mystery. Times have changed, and so has the world of cyberspace and computers. We don’t need any more Tron films, and if anyone had any good sense, they would make Tron: Ares the last. Having said that, there is a post-credit scene that promises otherwise. If there is a follow-up, get Nine Inch Nails on board again.

2 out of 5

Director: Joachim Rønning

Starring: Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Jeff Bridges, Evan Peters, Jodie Turner-Smith, Gillian Anderson, Hasan Minhaj, Arturo Castro, Cameron Monaghan, Sarah Desjardins

Written by: (also story) Jess Wigutow, (story) David DiGilio, (based on characters created) Steven Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird

Running Time: 119 mins

Cert: 12A

Release date: 10th October 2025