I’m still skeptical another Tron film will get off the ground anytime soon, though I know ultimately Disney is going to pull that franchise trigger. They just can’t help it.

It is indicative of how not-to-plan the whole Tron thing went that the film was not quickly put into production, and that many of the principles have since wandered off. In fact, today’s news is that Disney has hired David DiGilio to pen the script because the original writers have gotten too busy with their ABC show!

DiGilio is a relative newcomers who has only a show called Traveler and a new show sold to Showtime to his name. He’ll be replacing Adam Horowitz and Adam Kitsis. Director Joseph Kosinski has meanwhile moved on from Disney for Oblivion, and has even moved to fill his plate beyond that. Whether or not he returns will likely depend how enthusiastic Disney gets about sliding a big number across the table, if they do so at all.

As I said- I think Disney will ultimately pull the trigger on a third film, perhaps with grit teeth. Consider a film like On Stranger Tides, which was an unwanted third sequel released to dismal reviews and no particular energy, that still easily coasted across the $800m mark in only a few weeks. Tron: Legacy cost $170m at minimum (much bigger numbers if you believe some sources) and then had one of the most ambitious marketing campaigns in history behind it. They wanted a neon Avatar, and what they got was a film that couldn’t even manage $200m domestically, and barely crested that internationally. Yep, that’s $400m, but Disney is in the icon business and it’s less about immediate money than rides and toys and decades worth of tie-ins. The sad truth of it is that Tron has its cartoon, and the execs are surely keeping a close eye on that and its toys sales.

Some people enjoyed it though, and surely plenty would be ready to see another outing in the the Grid. Maybe DiGilio is a hell of a writer and can bring something to Tron that will make even the cynics excited. We’ll see if we see.

Source | THR

DISCUSS THIS on the CHUD Message Board
&
Like / Share it on Facebook (above or below) if you think it’s great!