Copyright Screen Rant
Tron: Ares has hit a major box office milestone, even though its budget still presents a problem. 2025's Tron: Ares is the third installment in the cult science fiction franchise and stars Jared Leto as a computer program who emerges into the real world. The Joachim Rønning-directed installment boasts a star-studded cast that also includes Jodie Turner-Smith, Gillian Anderson, Evan Peters, Greta Lee, and legacy star Jeff Bridges. Per The Numbers, by the end of November 11, Tron: Ares hit a cumulative global box office total of $140.1 million, comprising $71.9 million earned from the domestic marketplace and $68.2 million earned from international theaters. This total makes the new Tron movie the 26th release of the year to pass the $140 million worldwide milestone. At this point, it has outgrossed a large number of major 2025 releases, including From the World of John Wick: Ballerina ($137.2 million), Smurfs ($123.7 million), Karate Kid: Legends ($117 million), Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale ($101.5 million), and The Long Walk ($54.8 million). However, the movie is still falling tens of millions of dollars shy of its reported budget, which ranges between $180 million and $220 million. Considering the fact that it is already in the middle of its fifth full week in theaters and that its fourth weekend brought in a paltry $1.8 million at the domestic box office, it seems unlikely to even reach $180 million worldwide by the end of its run. Additionally, Tron: Ares is plagued by the fact that blockbuster movies often need to earn back two and a half times their production budgets in order to break even in theaters. This could place the movie's estimated break-even point somewhere between $450 and $550 million, which is a point that would almost certainly be impossible for it to hit in theaters. While the movie will eventually be bolstered by revenue from its VOD, streaming, television, and physical media releases, there is still a lot of ground that it needs to make up. While both of the previous installments in the franchise (1982's Tron and 2010's Tron: Legacy) became cult hits after the fact, neither had as much of a financial hurdle to overcome. In fact, Legacy grossed $409.9 million worldwide, which was not a spectacular outcome given its reported budget of $170 million, but put it in a much better place to earn a tidy profit as time went on. Ares, which will easily gross less than half that number, does not have the same advantages. If the sequel promised by the ending of Tron: Ares is going to come to fruition any time in the next decade, it will most likely only be deemed a worthwhile risk if it has a much tighter budget than the 2025 installment. Enjoy ScreenRant's box office coverage? Click below to sign up for my weekly box office newsletter (make sure to check "Box Office" in your preferences) and get exclusive analysis, predictions, and more:
