Tron: Ares' Box Office Collapse Looks Even Bleaker After Budget Balloons
Despite a marketing blitz, Disney’s Tron: Ares short-circuited at the box office—opening to $33.5 million domestic before plunging 67% in week two to $11.1 million—and a newly revealed higher budget makes the flop sting even more.
Disney gave Tron: Ares a big push, but the numbers are the numbers. After a soft debut, week two fell off a cliff, and now that the real budget has surfaced, the financial picture looks even rougher.
The drop
Opening weekend landed at $33.5 million over three days domestically, which was already under expectations. Week two then slid 67% to $11.1 million. As of now, the movie's box office sits around $103 million, and based on the trajectory, do not expect it to climb much beyond that.
The budget twist and the math
Per Deadline's accounting, the final worldwide gross is expected to wind up near $160 million. The killer detail: the real production budget was closer to $220 million, not the previously floated $170–180 million. Once you bring in marketing and all the usual downstream revenue and costs, the ledgers point to a sizable loss.
- Projected final gross: about $160 million
- Revised production budget: roughly $220 million
- Estimated Disney revenues (long-term): $72.2M from worldwide theatrical rentals; $37.6M from global home entertainment; $100M from global home television; $5M from airlines
- Estimated marketing and other costs: $102.5M for prints and advertising; $14.2M in residuals; $10.8M in other costs
- Total revenues modeled: $214.8M
- Total costs modeled: $347.5M
- Estimated loss: $132.7M
What this means for Tron
Tron has always been a tricky play for Disney. The movies have their fans, but they have never been outright box office hits. Meanwhile, the Tron roller coasters in Shanghai and Orlando pull some of the longest lines in those parks, which is a fun irony that does not fix an expensive film underperforming.
Could the popularity of the ride alone prop up another sequel? Unlikely. Even with a post-credits tease that tries to set up a follow-up uniting Jared Leto with Tron: Legacy alums Garrett Hedlund and Olivia Wilde, the current numbers suggest the franchise is probably headed back into the vault for a while, at least on the big screen.
Where things stand now
Tron: Ares is playing in theaters. If you are curious, now is the time. Just do not expect the box office story to dramatically change from here.