This article was originally published on SFFGazette.com.
TRON: Ares is now playing in theaters, and despite middling reviews, the movie stands a good chance of having a solid opening weekend at both the domestic and international box offices.
While the weeks ahead will make or break the TRON and TRON: Legacy sequel's chances of being deemed a hit or 2025's latest box office disappointment, should it fall into the former category, then chances are we'll get TRON 4.
TRON: Ares does have a mid-credits scene (there's nothing at the end of the credits), and it definitely has one eye on the future. By the time the movie ends, Evan Peters' villainous Julian Dillinger has managed to escape being made to pay for his actions, taking refuge in a Grid of his own making.
Distraught to discover that his digital empire has been decimated by the events of the movie's final act, he's intrigued when a mysterious disk rises from the floor. When Julian grabs it, he writhes in pain as his body is redressed in a familiar uniform.
Yes, it's Sark's armour, the Games Master from 1982's TRON. This makes Julian the host for this franchise's most iconic antagonist, and positions Peters' character as a villain who will return far more deadly and powerful than when our heroes last encountered him.
The original Sark served the Master Control Program, but is this Sark 2.0 calling the shots in The Grid or still in servitude to another digital big bad? And what role will Julian and his plans for the real and digital worlds play in all this? That remains to be seen.
However, as the grandson of Ed Dillinger and the next iteration of Sark, he's a new hybrid villain, of sorts, and that should make for exciting viewing in future movies.
TRON: Ares follows a highly sophisticated Program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind's first encounter with A.I. beings.
The movie stars Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Hasan Minhaj, Jodie Turner-Smith, Arturo Castro, Cameron Monaghan, and Gillian Anderson. Joachim Rønning directs; producers are Sean Bailey, Jeffrey Silver, Justin Springer, Leto, Emma Ludbrook and Steven Lisberger.
TRON: Ares (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), featuring all original music by Nine Inch Nails, will be released on September 19 via Interscope Records. The release marks the first-ever film score by the pioneering band, although bandmates Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross have composed 20 scores under their own names, winning two Oscars, three Golden Globes, a GRAMMY and an Emmy in the process.
TRON: Ares arrives in theaters on October 10, 2025.