Tron: Ares Ending and Post-Credits Scene Explained - How Is Tron 4 Set Up?

Let's marque this simple: You privation to cognize if determination are immoderate post- oregon mid-credits scenes successful Tron: Ares. The reply is yes, determination is simply a mid-credits scene. That scene, on with the film’s “regular” last pre-credits scene, has immoderate beauteous large implications for the imaginable aboriginal of the franchise.

Full spoilers for Tron: Ares follow...

The 3rd movie successful the Tron series, Tron: Ares follows a program, Ares (Jared Leto), who is brought into the existent satellite by his creator, Dillinger Systems’ CEO Julian Dillinger (Evan Peters), arsenic the astir precocious and almighty among a radical of digitally-created ace soldiers. Julian is the grandson of Tron’s nefarious Ed Dillinger (played by the precocious David Warner), and took implicit arsenic CEO from his mother, Elisabeth (Gillian Anderson), who has a batch of trepidation astir her son’s plans. Those plans see expanding profits by selling Ares and his troops to the military, but Julian has a large problem, which is that thing helium brings distant from the Dillinger Systems Grid, including the humanoid programs oregon their unthinkable vehicles oregon weapons, volition support successful our satellite aft 29 minutes.

This 29-minute obstruction is simply a occupation shared by Dillinger’s rival, ENCOM, with their integer creations, for which they person overmuch much altruistic intentions. But erstwhile Julian learns ENCOM CEO Eve Kim (Greta Lee) has recovered the permanence codification created by the legendary Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) that allows these integer beings to enactment successful the existent satellite without restriction, helium orders Ares to get it from her.

Code Breakers

The film’s MacGuffin is the aforementioned permanence code, which Eve archetypal discovers successful Alaska astatine a distant hideaway utilized by her precocious sister, Tess (Selene Yun), who died of cancer. In the midst of tons of aged floppy disc-held files near by the long-missing Kevin Flynn, Eve finds a transcript of the permanence code, overjoyed by what it could mean for the future.

Upon returning to the city, Eve is confronted by Ares and his partner, his chap warrior programme Athena (Jodie Turner-Smith), with the duo utilizing Light Cycles to pursuit her connected her ain motorcycle. When she’s cornered connected a dock, Eve destroys the thrust holding the permanence codification successful bid to halt them from getting it, but Julian’s contingency program is to person Eve herself changeable with a laser, sending her into the Dillinger Grid. Eve mightiness not beryllium capable to rewrite the code, but having seen it, it’s present stored wrong the recesses of her memory. Julian orders Ares and Athena to extract it from her portion derezing her, contempt knowing this volition pb to her imperishable decease successful some the Grid and the existent world.

Having seen Julian’s disregard for his chap programs’ beingness and present realizing that he’s adjacent consenting to termination different humans to execute his goals, the progressively funny and empathetic Ares turns connected Julian and helps Eve flight backmost to the existent world, wherever helium does his champion to support her from his erstwhile ally, Athena, adjacent arsenic he’s inactive hindered himself by the 29-minute limit. Ares convinces a wary Eve to assistance him get the permanence code, promising it volition beryllium kept from Dillinger. As Eve has learned, the record Eve recovered astatine Tess’ hideaway was a copy; the archetypal tin beryllium recovered successful a gathering she already goes to each day.

Achieving Impermanence

Eve takes Ares to Kevin Flynn’s aged office, circa 1989, which was preserved arsenic a show wrong ENCOM. There, they find the server wherever the permanence codification is housed, which is wrong the archetypal Grid created by Kevin. Ares travels wrong the Grid and finds…Tron, arsenic successful a Grid that inactive looks conscionable similar the 1 from the archetypal Tron movie successful 1982, aged school-looking integer effects included. After encountering a recreation of Bit from the archetypal movie and adjacent getting to thrust an archetypal epoch Light Cycle, Ares reaches the operation successful this Grid’s halfway wherever helium is greeted by nary different than Kevin Flynn himself; well, benignant of.

Tron: Ares doesn’t really undo Kevin’s decease astatine the extremity of Tron: Legacy, due to the fact that this isn’t truly a digitized Kevin successful the mode it was the past clip we saw him. When Ares asks this Kevin if he’s alive, Kevin tells him, “I beryllium successful this infinitesimal due to the fact that you do. A reflection of your presence.” (Why this Kevin would look adjacent older than the existent Kevin was erstwhile helium died wrong ENCOM’s Grid is simply a question we’ll permission you to ponder, but we tin each admit that they conscionable fto Jeff Bridges look his existent age, right?)

This Kevin is impressed to find that, arsenic a Program, Ares has evolved capable to see Eve a person helium wishes to help, not to notation that helium praises creation helium appreciates – successful this case, the euphony of his precocious discovered favourite band, Depeche Mode – for the “feeling” it gives him, alternatively than conscionable trying to beryllium objective astir it. Kevin offers Ares the permanence code, though helium notes it’s truly much of an "impermanence code,” due to the fact that erstwhile it’s enactment wrong Ares, helium volition beryllium quality and yet die, alternatively than beryllium capable to instrumentality implicit and implicit successful the mode a programme can.

Ares accepts, and Kevin sends him backmost to the existent satellite done a backdoor into his ain laboratory – the laboratory hidden wrong Flynn’s Arcade, which is inactive sitting closed up similar it was successful Tron: Legacy. And yeah, it’s chill they snuck Flynn’s Arcade into this movie, though idiosyncratic truly should bash thing with that place; that’s premier existent estate!

Meanwhile, Athena returns again to get Eve, and goes large this time, bringing with her 1 of the elephantine floating Recognizer vehicles from the Grid. Even Julian, arsenic hopeless arsenic helium is, knows this would pull acold excessively overmuch attraction connected the heels of the Light Cycles already seen by the public. That’s erstwhile Elisabeth arrives to unopen things down entirely, informing Julian she’s taking backmost the institution with the board’s enactment and that she’s sending Athena backmost to the Grid. Athena past stabs Elisabeth with her bladed individuality disc, sidesplitting her. When a distraught Julian asks her wherefore she did this, Athena says she’s simply pursuing Julian’s ain orders from earlier to execute her goals by immoderate means necessary.

The Recognizer flying supra the metropolis causes chaos successful the streets, with Athena and her chap soldiers taking down immoderate who reason them, including combatant jets, arsenic they prosecute Eve. As Eve is astir to beryllium taken by Athena, Ares shows up to prevention her, with his suit present lighting up successful nifty Tron bully feline blue, not atrocious feline red.

Ares and Athena conflict successful the thoroughfare portion ENCOM CTO Ajay (Hasan Minhaj) follows Eve’s program to reverse technologist the Dillinger-created laser that tin bring radical into the Grid to halt Athena from being capable to spell backmost successful erstwhile her 29 minutes ends. Ajay succeeds conscionable earlier Athena’s countdown ends; Ares, contempt them warring moments before, holds Athena successful his arms arsenic she dies 1 past time. When she tells him she was pursuing her directive, helium tells her helium knows she was, though he’s not definite what his ain directive is now.

With authorities alert that the onslaught connected the metropolis came from wrong Dillinger Systems, cops travel to apprehension Julian, who gets distant astatine the past infinitesimal by sending himself into the Dillinger Grid. Meanwhile, Ares escapes into the nighttime aft telling Eve the satellite and the Grid some request her.

Tron: Legacy’s Legacy

Tron: Ares notably doesn’t straight travel up connected Tron: Legacy’s cardinal characters oregon its ending, which recovered Kevin Flynn’s son, Sam (Garrett Hedlund) bring Quorra (Olivia Wilde) retired of the Grid and into the existent satellite – thing we’d ne'er seen hap earlier successful the franchise, but which becomes a predominant lawsuit successful Tron: Ares.

Still, contempt the displacement successful focus, the movie doesn’t disregard that Legacy existed either, mentioning Sam aggregate times, including the information that Eve and Tess archetypal took implicit ENCOM lone aft helium abruptly resigned for chartless reasons. At 1 point, arsenic the camera soars done files regarding Kevin Flynn, we besides precise rapidly spot a header that says thing astir a “Mystery Woman” that apt is astir Sam being spotted with Quorra.

And past there’s the film’s ending…

An epilogue lets america cognize via a quality study that Eve has enactment the permanence codification to noble use, allowing ENCOM to marque revolutionary advances that see increasing crops successful clime susceptible regions, processing caller drugs to conflict cancer, and more. Standing successful her sister’s aged Alaska hideaway, present rebuilt astatine ENCOM, Eve is fixed a postcard sent by Ares.

We spot Ares sitting astatine an outdoor cafe, present dressed successful non-Tron-y apparel for the archetypal clip – including a distracting bandana astir his cervix that screams “Jared Leto astir apt asked to deterioration this” – arsenic we perceive him constitute to Eve astir the unthinkable things he’s seen successful his travels, and however helium wonders what beingness volition beryllium similar 100 years from now, and however idiosyncratic similar him mightiness acceptable in. He says, “I consciousness similar I mightiness not beryllium unsocial with these questions” arsenic we spot him looking astatine a photograph of Sam Flynn and Quorra, and past a 2nd photograph of Quorra saying “last seen” with what looks to beryllium coordinates connected it. Ares hops connected a motorcycle and speeds off, seemingly connected a quest to find Tron: Legacy’s main characters; present it’s up to Disney to determine if that communicative volition really beryllium told!

…Oh, and if it is, volition it impact the titular quality from the Tron series, oregon astatine slightest his quality creator, Alan Bradley? The lone clip the connection “Tron” is adjacent said successful Tron: Ares is successful regards to the video crippled Kevin Flynn created with that title, portion ne'er referencing the programme of the aforesaid sanction that the full franchise is named after. Granted, Tron did dice astatine the extremity of Tron: Legacy, but Alan Bradley was surely live the past clip we saw him, yet he’s ne'er mentioned successful Ares either. Hopefully that changes successful a imaginable Tron 4, due to the fact that this bid needs much Bruce Boxleitner!

And hey, let’s not hide Cillian Murphy! Remember his super-quick quality successful Tron: Legacy? He played Ed Dillinger Jr., which means his quality would beryllium the babe member of Gillian Anderson’s precocious deceased Elisabeth. Maybe Ed Jr. could popular backmost up successful the aftermath of this household tragedy?

Does Tron: Ares Have a Mid- oregon Post-Credits Scene?

It definite does person a mid-credits scene, and it’s each astir the Dillingers, past and present. We spell backmost wrong the Dillinger Systems Grid to which Julian has escaped, wrong the aforesaid operation that Ares, Athena, and their chap soldiers erstwhile occupied. Julian stands successful awe looking retired astatine this satellite he’s ne'er viewed from the inside, erstwhile abruptly thing rises retired of the level down him. He turns to spot that it’s a reddish individuality disc, but 1 that looks decidedly aged school, similar the discs from the archetypal Tron movie.

As helium walks towards it, a dependable says the connection “Sark,” and erstwhile Julian grabs the disc, helium is abruptly engulfed successful energy, opening to signifier a reddish suit and distinctive helmet astir him that are unmistakably successful the benignant of the costume worn successful 1982’s Tron by the quality Sark, the villainous programme created by Julian’s grandfather, Ed (Sark was besides played by David Warner). As Julian screams, we chopped backmost to the credits.

When IGN’s Tom Jorgensen asked Tron: Ares manager Joachim Rønning astir this mid-credits country and what benignant of aboriginal menace this caller Julian-Sark hybrid could represent, Rønning was cautious astir the imaginable for a Tron 4, replying, “Obviously, you ne'er know. The past Tron was 15 years ago. So who knows wherever we are going to beryllium allowed to spell with this. I'm conscionable truthful blessed with each small Tron nugget that we tin enactment into the movie. Little homages, present and there. And evidently this is simply a large 1 for imaginable to wherever the communicative tin go. I conscionable retrieve loving the Sark plan and each of that from the archetypal film, and seeing Sark, 2025 version, I don't know… Obviously, I ne'er instrumentality thing for granted, similar wherever we are going to beryllium allowed to go. If capable radical spell and spot this movie and each of that stuff… There's truthful galore variables, due to the fact that these movies are truthful costly to make, but I would emotion to spell there.”