Depending on who you get your news from, last weekend’s opening for the latest Tron movie was either a decent start, or a massive flop. It’s certainly a conversation worth having, but it feels a bit too early to really bury the picture six floppies under. (And I’m not just saying that because of my favorable Tron: Ares review.) Let’s walk through a couple key factors that are still in play, and why this might be the wrong conversation to have in the first place.
Tron: Ares Hasn’t Made Its Full Worldwide Debut
Per reporting from THR and other sources, Tron 3’s slightly shaky opening weekend has people pointing fingers as to why the $33.5 million debut fell short of its pre-release estimates. While the first frame for director Joachim Rønning’s entry in the cult classic sci-fi saga wasn’t a home run, I still think there’s still hope in the fact that Disney’s current tentpole hasn’t fully completed its international debut.
More specifically, this week’s openings in Russia and China are of note. Those two countries in particular are the only holdouts from the top 10 international territories that delivered for Tron: Legacy back in 2010; per numbers from Box Office Mojo. Seeing as both nations should be online this weekend, there’s a shot that this weekend could see a decent hold. It may not be a silver bullet, but it also hints at another factor we really should consider – the audience.
Rotten Tomatoes’ Audience Score Could Help Tron 3 Stay In The Fight
Looking at Tron: Ares’ early box office picture can be a bit bleak. In the face of such news, another source of hope is the fact that Tron: Ares’ Popcornmeter rating is, at the time of writing this story, sitting at 87%. Believe it or not, that’s actually significantly higher than Tron: Legacy, which is currently at 64%. Both films are still considered “Hot,” but considering the chatter that’s surrounded this movie from day one, that seems pretty encouraging.
Word of mouth is something that can always help or hinder a movie. Just ask anyone who wrote off The Greatest Showman after opening fourth in its first weekend of release – only to spend 11 weeks in the top 10. While Tron: Legacy only spent 7 weeks in that bracket, also on the back of a December release date in 2010, it doesn’t feel like too much of a stretch to see this film performing modestly over an extended period of time. Of course, that depends on the competition; which is the next point we’ll be examining rather closely.
October’s Box Office Offerings Are Relatively Slim On Competition
To some Tron: Ares might not feel like an October movie, especially when Tron: Legacy occupied the Christmas holiday release window that blockbusters love to corner. That move could be another biodigital feather in the cap of Disney’s legacy franchise, as the rest of this month’s movies on deck have a handful of potential competitors.
Naturally, I’m expecting Ares to lose its top slot to this weekend’s hot ticket The Black Phone 2 (which we’ve reviewed.) In a year that’s seen even box office juggernaut Blumhouse struggling to knock it out of the park, the Ethan Hawke/Mason Thames led sequel might offer an easy win. Of course, I’m basing that on both the Halloween friendly release date, as well as the huge tide of goodwill the 2021 original banked upon its release. It’s science, folks; as this formula should propel Universal’s horror show to the top.
Other than that, the rest of the month could also see some healthy challenges from awards contenders like Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere and Bugonia. Not to mention Paramount’s Colleen Hoover adaptation Regretting You could be a dark horse contender for movie money. Keeping those pictures in mind, Tron: Ares could still ride out the top 10 for a window similar to its predecessor.
The Tron Franchise Has Always Been For The Fans
Even with all of the inside baseball we’ve talked about above, there’s still a chance that Tron: Ares could be seen as a “box office disaster.” An estimated $180 million production budget will do that, particularly in a year where Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe has fallen on its own hard times. But do you know what other movie failed based on a similar metric? Tron: Legacy, which carried a $170 million price tag – and eventually raked in $409.9 million worldwide.
That didn’t stop fans from wanting to see the next chapter of the story play out, a desire that almost saw Tron: Ascension giving us a three-quel a decade ago. In the face of consistently being written off as a “cult favorite,” the world that Steven Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird created decades ago has endured. It has spawned comics, an animated series, theme park rides, and tons of other media drawing heavy influence from the world of The Grid.
No matter what the numbers say, the Tron series will always be for the fans. Maybe that’s part of what’s held it back from wide mass appeal, despite Ares being rather user friendly with its handling of the lore. Perhaps the greatest proof of that fact is how without actor Jared Leto’s involvement, we may never have gotten Tron: Ares in the first place.
Should the latest battle between ENCOM and Dillinger Systems end up being a disappointment in the financial department, at least fans have already taken to this latest entry. Which is good, because Tron 3’s ending has primed a potential sequel to bind the story of this franchise together even further. Fans are even discussing on message boards who should score Tron 4; which definitely ties into the fact that Disney’s marketing campaign has made good work of the overall positive reception to Nine Inch Nails’ Tron: Ares score.
That sort of talk suggests that fans will keep hope alive for as long as it takes to get back on The Grid, just like they did in the almost 15 years between Legacy and Ares. If you’re curious about where things are headed, you should head to your theater to see for yourself. And while you’re at it, keep an eye on That Hashtag Show’s Tron: Ares archives, as you never know what sort of developments will crop up next. -End of Line-
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