How To Watch The Entire Tron Franchise In Order

It's unusual that Steven Lisberger's 1982 cyber-thriller "Tron" should become such a long-lasting franchise, given how deeply entrenched it is in a 1980s understanding of computers. The film attempted to bank on the rising popularity of video games in the United States, unaware that the industry was about to experience a multi-year bust (there's a reason why Nintendo called their home gaming console an "Entertainment System" instead of anything with the phrase "video game" in it). Indeed, the first "Tron" wasn't nearly as big a hit as Disney had hoped for. It made about $50 million on a $17 million budget, and raked in another $70 million in tie-in arcade cabinets and other merch, but that wasn't the "Star Wars"-sized mega-hit Disney was planning on. The fact that Disney ever wanted to return to "Tron" is a wonder. 

With the release of "Tron: Ares," there will have been three theatrically released "Tron" movies since 1982. There was also a TV series, a short film, and 20 video games to feature the "Tron" characters (that 20 includes cameos in games like "Kingdom Hearts," as well as games like "Discs of Tron," which merely recreate the games seen in the first "Tron" movie). At least one of the games is staged as a direct sequel to "Tron." Its actual place in the "Tron" canon can be debated. We'll cover it below, just to be thorough. As such, the so-called official "Tron" media includes the following: 

• "Tron" (1982) (feature film)
• "Tron 2.0" (2003) (video game)
• "Tron: Legacy" (2010) (feature film) 
• "Tron: The Next Day" (2011) (short film)
• "Tron: Uprising" (2012-2103) (TV series) 
• "Tron: Ares (2025) 

We'll go into detail on how they all fit together below.

"Tron" had what might be seen as a novel concept at the time. A computer programmer named Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) attempts to hack into his old place of employment, ENCOM, only to find that a lot of its operations have been taken over by a Master Control Program with, he senses, a consciousness of his own. "Tron" also takes place inside the electric dimension of the computer, wherein programs are envisioned as human-shaped figures in glowing, computerized outfits. Computers were so mysterious and ineffable to the general public in 1982 that Disney felt they needed anthropomorphization to be understood. The Master Control program manages to zap Kevin with an energy laser that can reduce physical objects into information, effectively sucking him inside the computer world. For the human-shaped programs inside the computer, video games are like gladiatorial contests to the death. 

Programs are overseen by their human users, although programs see their users as personal, individualized gods. The titular Tron is a program played by Bruce Boxleitner who aims to end the in-computer tyranny of the Master Control Program and his sycophants (represented by the wicked Sark, played by David Warner). Both Warner and Boxleitner also play their programs' human counterparts. Condy Morgan also plays Dr. Laura Bains as well as her program, Yori. 

Visually, "Tron" is unique, even if it was a mess. All the in-computer scenes were filmed with several layers of compositing, meaning they were way harder to make than they looked. "Tron" also included a lot of early CGI effects, which look rudimentary today, but are still visually effective. 

In 2003, Disney found that "Tron" had developed something of a cult following among the adults who saw it as kids. Know that "Tron" was ubiquitous in 1982, with Disney tying in multiple arcade games to the movie. Most video arcades had "Discs of Tron," and some owners of the Intellivision gaming console might have owned "Tron: Deadly Discs," Tron: Maze-a-Tron," or "Tron: Solar Sailer," all released in 1982. A "Tron" element was also added to Disneyland's Tomorrowland ride, "The Peoplemover," an element that remained part of the ride for decades. "Tron" existed in a strange nether-space at Disney, in that it was simultaneously an embarrassing bomb and something to continuously hype. 

By 2003, the world was ready for a proper "Tron" sequel, called "Tron 2.0." The new game, released on Xbox, Game Boy Advance, and on PCs, followed a new character named Jethro "Jet" Bradley, the son of Alan, Bruce Boxleitner's character from the movie. When Alan is kidnapped, a sentient computer program named Ma3a (pronounced "Maia") digitizes Jet and sucks him into the computer world to help. Jet finds that the computer information has been corrupted (in the form of a totalitarian government), and he requires the help of various "underground" programs to help him through. The computerized villain is the computer's security Kernel, and the real-world villain is a shifty executive named Thorne. In the world of "Tron 2.0," humans visit the computerized mainframe pretty regularly, although it's still largely a secret from the general public. Boxleitner plays Alan, and Cindy Morgan returns to play Ma3a. 

"Tron 2.0," like the original film from 21 years earlier, was only warmly received and not a huge hit. Perhaps Disney overestimated the popularity of the franchise, or perhaps they just needed to try out a different medium.

The actual canonical value of "Tron 2.0" was erased seven years later with the release of "Tron: Legacy" in 2010. The new film was set 27 years after the original and surrounded the adventures of Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund), the adult son of Jeff Bridges' character, Kevin Flynn, from the first "Tron." It seems that Kevin kept the original computer mainframe from 1982 on a server in his office, only to be sucked inside of it in 1989. In the present, Sam is also digitized and goes into the computer to locate his father. Also active in the computer world is an animated figure named Clu (modeled on Bridges) who rules with an iron fist and aims to take over the computerized world. 

The visuals of the computer world of "Tron" are given a significant upgrade, with slick, modern 2010s-era CGI enhancing them. The gladiatorial video games are now far more sophisticated, and the film, overall, is given a better sense of "cool" by director Joseph Kosinski. The computer world also has a caste system, and even nightclubs where errant programs go to drink (although what they drink, I couldn't say). The music was provided by Daft Punk, giving "Tron: Legacy" one of the more striking soundtrack records of its year. The film ended with Sam pulling a rogue program, Quorra (Olivia Wilde), into the real world.

"Tron: Legacy" was a bigger hit than "Tron," making almost $410 million on a large $170 million budget. 

"Legacy" was followed by Kurt Mattila's short film "Tron: The Next Day," which was included as a special feature on the "Legacy" home video releases. The short forces the characters to face the consequences of "Legacy," but it is also a prequel that fills in the gaps between the 1982 film and the 2010 film. Boxlietner and Hedlund star, as does Dan Shor, who appeared in the first "Tron." The short runs 10 minutes. 

"Tron: Legacy" was enough of a hit to inspire a prequel animated series called "Tron: Uprising" in 2012. "Uprising" aired on Disney XD and was available for download before hitting Netflix (briefly) in 2013. It's currently on Disney+. The series is set shortly before the events of "Tron: Legacy," when Clu was still ruling over the computer world. The main character is a program named Beck (Elijah Wood) who is secretly trained by Tron (Boxleitner) to fight Clu's tyranny. Clu (Fred Tatasciore) isn't a major player in the series, represented instead by the cruel computerized General Tessler (Lance Henricksen).  Emmanuelle Chriqui plays one of Tessler's aides, while Paul Ruebens plays a subcommander. Beck, meanwhile, is joined in his revolutionary efforts by Mara (Mandy Moore) and Zedd (Nate Corddry). 

Like all "Tron" media before it, "Tron: Uprising" was pretty warmly received without being a giant hit. It only lasted 19 episodes over its single season, running from May 2012 through January 2013. Paul Scheer, Kate Mara, Aaron Paul, Parminder Nagra, Lake Bell, Marcia Gay Harden, Lance Reddick, and David Arquette had guest roles or recurring roles, and Olivia Wilde returned from "Legacy." 

Due out this year is "Tron: Ares," and it will begin with the tantalizing concept presented at the end of "Legacy." Jared Leto will play Ares, a security program that is pulled from a computer into the real world. All Hell breaks loose, however, when vehicles and other digital elements from the computer world enter ours and start to do damage. In a world that is butting heads with digital actresses and the scourge of AI, "Tron: Ares" may prove to be salient and relevant.