Ares Teases Fans With One of Legacy’s Most Important Plot Threads

This article contains spoilers for “Tron: Ares”

The gap between the “Tron” films has narrowed, with “Tron: Ares” (read our review here) finally arriving 15 years after “Tron: Legacy”, itself arriving 28 years after the original adventure in the Grid. Like the second installment, “Tron: Ares” introduces a new cast of characters at risk of being removed to replace those noticeably absent from its predecessor. Fans of the franchise need not worry, however, as it is by bypassing the past of “Tron: Legacy” that “Tron: Ares” sets up a future chapter that we hope will arrive much sooner than it took for this film and the previous one to load.

Perhaps one of the most daring things about “Tron: Ares” is daring to attach itself to a film that, for the most part, it pays very little attention to. When our third trip to the Grid begins, we are informed that Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund), the son of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges, the only “Tron” actor to return in “Ares”), and the escaped program, Quorra (Oliva Wilde) have not been seen since they rode off into the sunset at the end of “Legacy”, seemingly leaving the world of business and digital behind them. Now all the attention is on Flynn Jr.’s successor, new ENCOM CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee), who searches for the code of permanence that will keep digital creations in the real world, whether it’s an orange tree to solve the food shortage or Ares (Jared Leto), an escapist program made by Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), the grandson of the original antonist of “Tron,” Edward Dillinger. (David Warner).

It is revealed early on that Sam has since left the company and passed ownership to Eve, but it is during Ares’ infiltration of ENCOM that the program learns that another like him has managed to escape into the real world. While going through the files to try to find Eve’s whereabouts and the permanence code, he comes across an article highlighting “Who is Sam Flynn’s mystery woman?” who we know to be Quorra, before he quickly overtakes him completely. Brief as it was, it makes it clear that the two stayed together after their adventure in the Grid. It is only in the final act of the film that the heroic program, now fully human, picks up the trace and gives a glimpse of what could be on the horizon.

In a letter to Eve, Ares reveals that he is traveling the world and trying to find his place in it. The last pit stop we see him make is in Mexico City, where he’s swapped his neon-lit gear for much more breathable linen clothing. While taking a moment, Ares hovers over photos of Sam and Quorra, which have coordinates detailing their last known whereabouts, and assures himself that more than the previous films ever did, a sequel is absolutely being set up. It’s just a question of what that might entail, and whether we might see the new and old generation of “Tron” teaming up against a whole new threat.

Besides Ares going in search of Sam Flynn, a more ominous final note sees Julian Dillinger escaping the authorities and ending up in the Grid. However, circumventing the law becomes the least of his problems when, after seizing the ID disk that previously belonged to the original “Tron” villain, Sark (David Warner), Julian seemingly becomes the next generation of the evil program that caused trouble in 1982.

With Julian getting this new upgrade, it’s safe to say that the franchise plans to stage another battle on or off The Grid, with the former leader of Dillinger Systems taking on Ares. What would be great is to see if the impending battle causes current and former ENCOM leaders to join the old program, no matter what happens to them. It all depends on how successful “Tron: Ares” is for it to continue.

The new trio is a huge box office gamble for Disney, and it may take opening weekend to determine whether a fourth film will get the green light. If so, we could see an actual member of the Flynn family return, along with his girlfriend who escaped from Grid. Just keep your bike paths light crossed so it takes less than a decade for this to happen.