A new rumor alleges that The Walt Disney Company will retire the Tron series from the big screen after Tron: Ares’ box office bomb.
In its opening weekend Tron: Ares only grossed $33.2 million domestically and added another $27 million internationally for a global total of $60.2 million. The film has a reported $180 million budget meaning it needs to make $540 million to break even.
Given this as well as the film’s B+ CinemaScore, The Hollywood Reporter’s Seth Abramovitch, Borys Kit, and Pamela McClintock write, “sources say Tron will likely retire from the big screen.”
If this is true, this is not at all surprising given there have only been three Tron films ever. The first Tron was released back in 1982. Disney then released Tron: Legacy in 2010, 28 years later. It then took another 15 years to release Tron: Ares.
Outside of the films, there was an animated TV series titled Tron: Uprising that aired in 2012-2013. There was also a short film created in 2011 titled Tron: The Next Day.
There was also a planned animated series that Ciro Nieli pitched back in 2005, but he revealed “ultimately it wouldn’t work out.” He shared his original idea was “a reimagining of an original pitch I had called POWERCADE about 2 kids who inherit electrical powers and a strange energy creature named GLITCH.”
Additionally, there was a live-action TV series that was originally planned for Disney+, but never came to fruition.
Furthermore, Disney has multiple theme park attractions based on the franchise including the Tron Lightcycle Run roller coaster.
So the idea that the franchise will be retired from the big screen is not at all surprising given the previous installment before Tron: Ares was 15 years ago and it took nearly 30 years to make that one after the original Tron.
So, they're done ruining it. Next franchise to ruin!
Why do films even hire Jared Leto?