One person’s big-screen trash is another’s streaming treasure, and that couldn’t be truer when it comes to a specific entry that’s found its way into Disney+’s top ten. As revealed by FlixPatrol and Disney+, if the TV remote is within reach, somehow, one of the House of Mouse’s biggest box-office failures of 2025 has earned a second life on the streamer, presumably because of how good it looks, sounds, and well, that’s about it.
Hitting theaters back on October 10, 2025, “Tron: Ares” was a critical and box-office failure. Earning only 53% on Rotten Tomatoes, the third entry in the Grid-based franchise that was anything but scientifically accurate was deemed by Mashable as a “heavy-handed, dunderheaded, and over earnest, but also occasionally funny, charming, sexy, and thrilling” and in the eyes of Kermode and Mayo’s Take on YouTube “one of the most boring experiences I’ve had in a very long time… I didn’t care about anyone or anything at any point.”
Unfortunately, the receipts for “Tron: Ares” time at the cinema fared just as poorly. “Ares” brought in a disappointing $142.2 million against an estimated production budget of nearly $220 million, making it something of a disaster for Disney. So what does the threequel have going for it to earn such a safe spot in Disney+’s watchlist?
Tron: Ares was praised for its sights and sounds, but not its story
The biggest selling point of the third “Tron” movie was similar to that of its second. Following on from the Daft Punk-propelled soundtrack of “Tron: Legacy” in 2010, “Tron: Ares” was backed by Nine Inch Nails. It was a collaboration that was prominently featured in the film’s marketing before its release and was certainly the highlight of the latest movie. Blend that with the signature CGI landscape and its iconic transport that fans have come to love, and the code should’ve been there to conjure something of a sleeper hit, at least.
Unfortunately, there was a glitch, and a lot of it seemed linked to its star, Jared Leto as Ares. As a result, it perhaps makes sense why the film is doing so well on streaming platforms. In a viewing atmosphere where the risk of looking at a second screen is even higher outside of a theater, “Tron: Ares” is a perfect watch that doesn’t demand your full attention. Instead, looking over to see Light Cycles tear through city streets to the tune of Nine Inch Nails every so often (which you can do at home) might be what’s allowed “Tron: Ares” to find its place as high up on the list as it is.
Unfortunately, sources told The Hollywood Reporter that Disney is pulling away from the franchise, so the cliffhanger it leaves you with, which so many sci-fi movies have done, won’t likely be revisited.
