So far, Jared Leto and big budget blockbusters haven’t been a great mix. Suicide Squad was a huge hit financially, but his Joker wasn’t particularly well received, something that Zack Snyder’s Justice League will be looking to remedy. He also had a substantial role in Oliver Stone’s box office disaster Alexander and played the villain in critically acclaimed but commercially disappointing Blade Runner 2049, while the jury is still very much out on the SPUMC’s Morbius.
The 48 year-old will be remaining in the studio system for at least a little longer, though, after signing on to star in Disney’s latest stab at Tron. The sci-fi franchise is a strange case, one that has a loyal and dedicated fanbase without ever really managing to win over general audiences. The 1982 original was undeniably groundbreaking but a modest financial success, and 28 years later, Legacy pulled in $400 million globally but still didn’t perform well enough to make sequels a worthwhile investment.
However, the Mouse House appear to be confident in Tron: Ares, because we’ve now heard from our sources – the same ones that told us Leto would be involved months before the project was officially announced – that the Academy Award winner has reportedly signed a three-picture deal in the hopes of headlining an entire trilogy.
Garth Davis, who helmed Best Picture nominee Lion in 2016, will direct from a script by relatively unknown writer Jesse Wigutow, with Leto the only actor attached as of yet, meaning that it could be a while before Tron: Ares settles on a start date for production. By the time the movie eventually hits theaters, though, the brand will be over 40 years old with just three installments to show for it, and Disney will surely be hoping that the third time proves to be the charm.
