“TRON: Ares” Director Talks Nine Inch Nails’ Music as a New Image is Revealed

Joachim Rønning on why Nine Inch Nails were the right band to score the new “TRON” movie.

A new image from TRON: Ares has been released, along with more information about the use of music in the film, which will be scored by Nine Inch Nails.

What’s Happening:

  • Empire has exclusively revealed a new image and some new info about next year’s TRON: Ares, the third film in the Disney sci-fi franchise that began in 1982.
  • The full image, seen below, depicts Jared Leto as Ares standing alongside what looks to be a new version of TRON’s iconic lightcycles. In the film, Ares is a program who travels off the Grid and to the real world.
  • Though Jeff Bridges does return as Kevin Flynn, Empire describes Ares as “less a direct sequel to the previous films than the start of something new, imbued with the bio-digital jazz of all that came before.”
  • Director Joachim Rønning (Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Young Woman and the Sea) also spoke about the approach Nine Inch Nails will take composing the music for the film. The two current ongoing members of Nine Inch Nails (not counting their touring musicians), Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, have composed many acclaimed scores, including The Social Network, Soul and Challengers. However, the duo are usually credited for their film scores under their own names, not the band name, making TRON: Ares stand out.

What They’re Saying:

  • Joachim Rønning: “With Nine Inch Nails making the music, this installment will be a little grittier, a little bit more industrial. It’s been important for me to contrast The Grid and the real world. In that sense, Nine Inch Nails lends itself perfectly into this new Tron world that we are creating.”
  • Rønning also told Empire: “What I always look for in any story is a strong emotional core. This film will probably be more emotional than people are expecting. It’s about the cost of being human.”

More TRON:

  • In August, Jared Leto documented his first time going on the TRON Lightcycle / Run at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom.
  • Nine Inch Nails were announced as the ones scoring TRON: Ares at D23, where an exclusive trailer was debuted, which also recently was shown at D23 Brazil. Disney has yet to put any previews online or in theaters.
  • Along with Leto and Bridges, the cast of TRON: Ares also features:
    • Evan Peters
    • Greta Lee
    • Jodie Turner-Smith
    • Cameron Monaghan
    • Sarah Desjardins
    • Hasan Minhaj
    • Arturo Castro
    • Gillian Anderson
  • TRON: Ares opens October 10, 2025.

Eric Goldman
Growing up in Los Angeles, Eric grew up adoring movies and theme parks, carrying that love with him into a career covering a wide gamut of entertainment and pop culture that also includes TV, toys and comics. As a lifelong fan of both Disneyland and horror, the Haunted Mansion is his dream home.