TRON: Legacy is a good movie. It’s entertaining, visually impressive, and most importantly, it all ties together when Flynn and Clu finally face off at the end. It’s a story well told. So when everyone was talking sequel (TRON: Ascension), including the return of Joseph Kosinski at the helm, with Garrett Hedlund and, most importantly, Olivia Wilde, I was excited. But, like most good things in life, it was not to be. Last year, amid swirling stories of shooting starting soon, Disney suddenly scrapped the scintillating (sorry, the alliteration key got stuck there) movie project. That was it. No TRON 3. But then, just recently, the folks over at Screenrant were talking with Disney exec Brigham Taylor, bringing back some home that TRON 3 might still happen.

Disney Exec Talks TRON 3

Taylor was providing examples of Dinsey movies that weren’t big on initial release, but were revived later with greater success, and mentioned TRON: Legacy. So, naturally, this led to the question of whether or not the franchise was truly dead. Here’s what Taylor had to say:

“I always hope for that. I just had a wonderful visit to Shanghai, where they have an amazing attraction based on TRON Legacy. The designers just did such an amazing job creating the feeling of stepping onto The Grid, and that indelible visual world that Lisberger created and Kosinski explored… and I think there’s a real stickiness to that that I hope can grow into a film or whatever else. So I don’t know what I’d “hint” at other than that I hope for that, and that there’s obviously been conversations.”

OK. I take away three things from that. First, it’s not a lot to go on, but it’s something, and I’ll take it. Second, if there are “conversations” happening, and people talking about it, that’s a good thing. Better than just “I hope it happens.” And third, Shanghai Disney has a TRON: Legacy attraction? Lucky! How cool would it be to cruise around on the grid on a light bike, taking down bad guys with light discs and … oh, it’s just a roller coaster? Still, that’s pretty cool.

Bruce Boxleitner is OUT!

Still, if TRON 3 does happen, one person that almost certainly won’t be returning is Bruce Boxleitner. When the project was killed last year, he had this to say:

“I don’t really care anymore. I’m done with it. I’ve moved on. I hate to say that but it’s been too up and down for me. I would rather not just keep going. I don’t want to repeat my career anymore. That’d be like, ‘Let’s reboot Scarecrow and Mrs. King.’ No, I’m not interested. Or Babylon 5.”

A little bit strong, and final, but Boxleitner’s coming from a place of disappointment. After the original, he took part in the TRON 2.0 video game, returned for Legacy and the brief animated series TRON: Uprising, and was ready to start work on Ascension.

“[I was] very much surprised. Not that I was privy to anything, but once in a while, I got little snippets of information. Since we shoot Cedar Cove in Vancouver, I did hear a lot from up there. There’s several publications and blogs that are about what jobs are coming, what films are in pre-production, stuff like that. TRON was always on those lists. They were very close to actually shooting.”

“It breaks my heart,” Boxleitner added, “but I understand the times move on. Disney, it’s not in their [wheelhouse] anymore. The animated series [had] a lot of promise, they didn’t stick with that either. I don’t think they really want it anymore. I think they’ve got Star Wars. They’ve got Marvel. Legacy was successful. I’m not sure that they really had that much interest anymore. I hate to say that because I think there’s a lot more to go.”

Final Thoughts

As Boxleitner mentioned, Disney does have a lot on their plate, but for now, I’m holding out hope Kosinski and others can be pulled back together for TRON 3. In particular, I think Kosinski’s involvement is key. He followed up Legacy with Oblivion, another beautiful, well-crafted sci-fi story, providing evidence that he’s not just a one-trick pony. I think he’s the right guy for more TRON. What do you guys think? Any interest in more TRON?

Featured Images: Disney