Tron 3 Officially In The Works From Jared Leto And Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 Director
After years of stops, starts, false alarms, and scrapped iterations, "Tron 3" is finally moving forward at Disney with a new creative team attached. Jared Leto ("Morbius," "Dallas Buyers Club"), who has been attached to the project for several years now, has continued to champion it behind the scenes. Apparently, that worked as the Oscar-winner is indeed going to star in the film, with a director and script both in place.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Joachim Rønning is set to direct the film, which is going under the title of "Tron: Ares." It will not, seemingly, be a reboot of the franchise and will, per the report, pick up where "Tron: Legacy" left off more than a decade ago. Jesse Wigutow ("It Runs in the Family") penned the version of the screenplay that is actually, it would seem, going to go before cameras. No word yet on just how soon filming could begin, nor is there any word on who will star alongside Leto. Will Jeff Bridges return as Kevin Flynn? Are any of the "Legacy" stars coming back? Lots of questions, few answers.
Rønning has a solid relationship with Disney, having co-directed "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" along with "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil." So he's got an established track record of coming into existing franchises and making it work. He also directed the upcoming "Young Woman and the Sea" for Disney, which stars Daisy Ridley of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" fame.
Third time's the charm?
Joseph Kosinski helmed 2010's "Tron: Legacy," which was meant to revive the franchise for modern audiences years after the original 1982 sci-fi cult classic initially broke ground. The movie did fine, taking in $400 million worldwide against a reported $170 million budget, complete with a bangin' soundtrack by Daft Punk. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to justify the sequel Kosinski had initially envisioned. He will just have to be content being the guy who directed "Top Gun: Maverick," one of the highest-grossing movies of all time.
Jared Leto, meanwhile, is coming off starring in Sony's Marvel Comics adaptation "Morbius," which was a critical failure and box office disappointment. He also headlined the miniseries "WeCrashed" about the downfall of WeWork. Some of the actor's other recent credits include "House of Gucci," "The Little Things," and "Blade Runner 2049." On the Disney side of things, he's also starring in this year's remake of "Haunted Mansion" as Hat-Box Ghost. Presumably, that went well, given that he's now taking over as the new face of another big Disney franchise.
"Tron: Ares" does not yet have a release date set.