Walt Disney Studios has revealed that Jeff Bridges will return to the TRON franchise in next year’s TRON: Ares. Bridges was the original star of the 1982 cult classic TRON and the film’s long-awaited 2010 sequel, TRON: Legacy. While TRON fans were unsure if the original star would return to the franchise again in Ares, Bridges was confirmed to return in a new tweet. 

Jeff Bridges returns to the grid. #TronAres pic.twitter.com/Ib5tnazwHT

— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) April 29, 2024

Bridges plays Kevin Flynn, the protagonist of 1982’s TRON. Flynn was an early video game designer trapped in a digital world called “The Grid.” Bridges returned to the role in TRON: Legacy which followed Kevin’s son Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) as he returned to the Grid to save his father. Bridges’ character seemingly perished in the finale of Legacy. It remains to be seen how he will return to the franchise in TRON: Ares. 

The film’s official synopsis reads: “TRON: Ares follows a highly sophisticated Program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind’s first encounter with A.I. beings.” TRON: Ares stars Jared Leto as the titular Ares.  Other stars include Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Hasan Minhaj, Jodie Turner-Smith, Arturo Castro, Cameron Monaghan, and Gillian Anderson

TRON: Ares is set to release on October 10, 2025.