Disney has apparently resurrected plans for a Tron threequel, following news in 2015 that the project was dead.
Speaking to the Light the Fuse podcast, Disney music producer Mitchell Leib confirmed that Tron 3 talks are underway, with the aim of bringing the project to Disney+. He also announced that conversations are ongoing with French synthpop/dance duo Daft Punk, who scored 2010's Tron: Legacy.
"Now with Disney+, I think there are opportunities to be creating content that we otherwise wouldn't have been able to create, you know because we're in the movie business," Leib explained. "Disney+ I think is going to afford us the opportunity to expand and get much more diversified in the kind of content we can create."
Back in 2017, rumours were circulating that a Tron reboot script would secure the involvement of actor Jared Leto. Although it came to nothing, reports suggest that Leto is back onboard for Tron 3.
Directed by Joseph Kosinski (who helms his year's Top Gun: Maverick) Tron: Legacy picked up the thread of the original 1984 movie. The sequel further developed the idea of a three-dimensional computer world, known as 'The Grid', in which simulations battle each other for survival. The twist in Tron: Legacy was that Jeff Bridges' original character Flynn had split in half, resulting in his human side and also an A.I. named Clu.
Released to middling reviews but relatively successful box office returns, Tron: Legacy possessed a stylish neon-inflected visual palate. There's no word yet on the conceptual design of the third movie, or even word that Jeff Bridges is set to return, but Mitchell Leib says he's enthusiastic about the premise.
"We've got a great script, I mean a really phenomenal script that we're very excited about," Leib said. "Whereas the timing wasn't right to have done it years ago, I think we feel like the timing is right now, and I feel like we've learned a lot of lessons from that last movie."
The involvement of Daft Punk is reason enough to be excited. Tron: Legacy was their debut film score and showcased an arresting mixture of organic orchestral might and stylish electronic arrangements. Ranging from aggressive bombast to ethereal beauty, it was a fine score that owed a lot of its success to orchestrator Joseph Trapenese's mixing. Leib said that Daft Punk's manager Paul Hahn had engaged in a "starting conversation" about the project, while also saying that the twosome are "open to anything and everything".
"A lot of things gotta fall into the right places, but certainly there's an open-mindedness to it," Leib added.
What do you make of the prospect of a Daft Punk-scored Tron threequel? Let us know @Cineworld.