How Disney+'s New #1 Movie Beat James Cameron's Avatar

When Tron: Ares arrived in theaters in October 2025, it was positioned as a bold revival of one of Disney’s most visually distinctive franchises. After the box office success of Tron: Legacy, fans eagerly anticipated the next installment. However, the high-concept Disney sci-fi sequel became one of the studio’s biggest box office disappointments. Now, Tron: Ares’ is streaming on Disney+, and this has changed everything.

Against expectations, Tron: Ares has rocketed to the top spot on Disney+ in the United States, even pushing past Avatar: The Way of Water on the platform’s top 10 movies list in the US (via Flix Patrol). For a film many thought was the end of Tron after its theatrical run, its resurgence on the small screen has sparked renewed hope for the future of the franchise.

What Is Tron: Ares About?

Tron: Ares is the third entry in Disney’s Tron franchise, following the original 1982 film and 2010’s Tron: Legacy. Although set in the same universe and revolving around the Dillinger and Flynn families, producer Justin Springer has confirmed Tron: Ares is not a direct sequel.

Set in a near-future version of the real world, the story explores what happens when an advanced program escapes the digital Grid and enters human society. Unlike previous Tron movies, Tron: Ares shifts focus away from legacy characters and introduces the titular new digital entity, played by Jared Leto.

Created by Julian Dillinger, Ares is pitched as the perfect expendable soldier, a sentient being designed for control and adaptation. The film leans heavily into themes of identity, surveillance, and the blurred line between code and consciousness.

Why Tron: Ares Was A Box Office Bomb

Although visually Tron: Ares remains faithful to the franchise’s DNA, director Joachim Rønning emphasized a darker, more grounded tone. While the film includes nods to earlier entries, it largely functions as a standalone story, steering the series away from the nostalgic glow of Tron: Legacy and toward a colder, more confrontational aesthetic.

That creative decision was meant to attract new audiences unfamiliar with Tron lore, but it also risked alienating longtime fans who expected deeper connections to the franchise’s past. This risk did not pay off. Despite its ambitious premise, Tron: Ares’ poor box office performance quickly marked the film as a major Disney flop for numerous reasons.

Marketing problems played a significant role in Tron: Ares’ box office failure. The movie arrived during a crowded release window packed with established franchise films. Promotional materials leaned heavily on style rather than story, emphasizing visuals over character or emotional stakes. For general audiences, the trailers did little to clarify why this sequel mattered, especially 15 years after Tron: Legacy.

Without strong pre-release buzz, the movie struggled to stand out, particularly among casual viewers unfamiliar with Tron’s franchise history. This left the film grossing only $142.2 million worldwide (via Box Office Mojo).

Critical reception was not kind, either, with Tron: Ares receiving a middling 53% on Rotten Tomatoes. While some pundits praised the film’s ambition, others felt its ideas were undercooked, leaving potential viewers unconvinced. Even long-standing franchise loyalty couldn’t compensate for what many fans saw as a crucial absence. Fans felt that Jeff Bridges — who defined the first two Tron films as Kevin Flynn — was as good as absent in Tron: Ares.

Bridges' reduced presence sent a clear signal that this was not a continuation of the story audiences had invested in, but a deliberate pivot away from it. For longtime fans, that shift made the film feel disconnected from the Tron lore they cared about.

Tron: Ares Is Finding Redemption On Streaming

Impressively, the trajectory of Tron: Ares changed dramatically after debuting on Disney+ on January 7. The film rapidly climbed the platform’s U.S. charts, eventually securing the #1 position and surpassing long-standing favorites, including Avatar: The Way of Water. Viewers who skipped Tron: Ares in theaters are now giving it a chance without the risk of ticket prices or time commitments.

The timing of Tron: Ares' streaming release also worked in the film’s favor. Unlike its theatrical outing, it has arrived on Disney+ during a quiet period for moviegoers. Without new blockbuster releases commanding attention, Disney+ subscribers are more likely to sample a high-profile sci-fi title like Tron: Ares.

This ties in with how streaming viewers often approach films. Generally, they have less demanding expectations and are more open to giving flawed but interesting projects a chance. For many, Tron: Ares is being reassessed as an ambitious sci-fi experiment rather than an unquestionable failure. In that way, the film's self-contained format benefits from being on the small screen.

The movie also thrives in a streaming context because of its tone. Its slower pacing and atmospheric storytelling play better when audiences can pause, rewind, or watch in segments. What felt distant on the big screen becomes more engaging in a personal setting.

Is Tron: Ares' Disney+ Success Enough To Continue The Franchise?

With Tron: Ares’ newfound success on Disney+, can this be enough to secure the franchise’s future? After its theatrical run — and its disappointingly weak global performance — some felt that a fourth Tron movie shouldn’t be made or couldn’t be. After all, Disney historically prioritizes theatrical success when greenlighting sequels.

However, streaming metrics are becoming increasingly influential. Strong Disney+ engagement suggests there is still an audience for Tron, even if it doesn’t manifest at the box office. That said, reviving Tron would require a clearer creative direction and a better integration of legacy elements with new ideas. Streaming success may justify lower-budget spin-offs or series rather than another theatrical gamble.

In that sense, Tron: Ares may represent a turning point rather than an ending. Its unexpected rise shows that audience interest has simply shifted platforms. Whether Disney chooses to follow that signal will determine if Tron remains a cult curiosity or evolves into a modern sci-fi staple.