TRON 3 Is Happening… Or Is It?

When a film makes $400 million worldwide in theaters, generally it’s safe to say that a sequel is on the way. However, when the film in question is TRON: Legacy – which, between production and marketing, is estimated to have cost upwards of $300 million – that’s not necessarily a given.

Walt Disney Pictures meant for Legacy to kick off a new era in the new TRON universe. Despite mixed reviews and disagreements over whether or not the sequel was really a financial “blockbuster”… it has. Sort of.

An animated TV series, TRON: Uprising, which takes place prior to the events of Legacy, begins airing on Disney XD next year, and it seems that TRON 3 will be happening as well.

Script work on a third TRON live-action movie actually began seven months before Legacy even reached theaters in December 2010. However, when the film failed to become quite the “3D cinematic event” that the previous winter’s Avatar had been, Disney studio executives eased on the brakes and slowed development of TRON 3 to a (relative) crawl.

TRON franchise stalwart Bruce Boxleitner – who played the franchise’s namesake in both Legacy and the original 1982 TRON movie… but is not actually the series’ protagonist (make of that what you will) – has said that TRON 3 is a go and could hit theaters by 2013. Is that true?

Well, theoretically.

Disney commissioned David Digilio, the writer of the 2006 survival drama, Eight Below, to script TRON 3 back in June 2011, but, at the time of writing, no one is attached to direct it. Legacy helmer Joseph Kosinski won’t be available to work on the project for a while now, because he is currently working on, Horizons, a screen adaptation of his soon-to-be-published comic book, “Oblivion.”

That TRON 3 will feature new screenwriting blood should be welcome news to the ears of those who thought Legacy suffered from a convoluted mythology and hole-riddled plot. Seeing how the third TRON film will likely reuse many of the same practical sets, costumes, and digital technology employed to realize the cyber realm, known as “The Grid” in Legacy, it end up being a less costly endeavor for Disney.

TRON 3 would also, theoretically, pick up the narrative threads left dangling at the conclusion of Legacy, such as those concerning the now-human Quorra (Olivia Wilde) and the briefly-glimpsed programmer, known as Edward Dillinger (an uncredited Cillian Murphy), and further develop them. Where their storylines will ultimately go is anyone’s guess right now.

The cult following that TRON has earned over the nearly three decades since its initially, disastrous theatrical release remains strong. Members of the movement seemingly remain quite interested in seeing another live-action installment in the franchise.

This guest post is by Edwin, an author for USDish. You can follow him on Twitter: @TheCelebutaunt.