I Miss Daft Punk, But I Love Nine Inch Nails’ Tron Ares Score So Far

The new trailer for Tron: Ares has me even more excited about the long-awaited sequel, even though the musical score won’t be done by Tron: Legacy’s Daft Punk. While Tron: Legacy received mixed reviews upon its 2010 release, resulting in a 51% Rotten Tomatoes score, the immersive sci-fi IP still has mᴀssive appeal, which is proven by Disney’s decision to move forward with Tron: Ares. The impressive cast of Tron: Ares, which includes Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Gillian Anderson, and Jeff Bridges reprising his role as Kevin Flynn, also sets the sequel up for success.

Tron: Ares will feature a new program that brings the digital world into reality, a fascinating update that is sure to pique many viewers’ interests, even those who weren’t impressed by Tron: Legacy or haven’t even seen any of the Tron movies. Along with a new story and mostly new characters, Tron: Ares will have a new director in Joachim Rønning, known for directing previous blockbuster sequels for Disney such as Pirates of the Caribbean: ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Men Tell No Tales and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. The Tron: Ares director recently predicted that “people are going to freak out” about the updated story world, tech, and possibly the new sound.

Nine Inch Nails Took Over From Daft Punk To Do The Score For Tron: Ares

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross Are Two Of The Best Working Composers In Hollywood

One of the coolest aspects of Tron: Legacy was that it was scored by legendary electronic producers and DJs Daft Punk. In fact, their Tron: Legacy original soundtrack might literally be the best thing to come out of the movie. Featuring notable standouts like “Derezzed” and “The Son of Flynn,” – which was later sampled in Kid Cudi’s 2014 track “Too Bad I Have To Destroy You Now” – the Draft Punk Tron: Legacy soundtrack is often considered one of the best film scores by an electronic duo ever made. Daft Punk, known for their countless dance hits like “Get Lucky”, “One More Time”, and “Instant Crush”, are legends of the genre.

If there were to be any composer or musical group that could reasonably take the reins from Daft Punk, Nine Inch Nails is as good as any. Consisting of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, the Oscar-winning composers behind the groundbreaking scores for The Social Network, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Gone Girl, Mank, and Soul, Nine Inch Nails is also a legendary industrial rock band.

Reznor and Ross – who have developed their own signature brand as composers from their actual names – are releasing the Tron: Ares score under their NIN brand.

Interestingly, Reznor and Ross – who have developed their own signature brand as composers from their actual names – are releasing the Tron: Ares score under their NIN brand. It’s worth noting that their original score for last year’s Challengers was heavily EDM-focused, which is good news for Tron: Ares.

Why Daft Punk’s Tron: Legacy Score Worked So Well

Daft Punk Is An Iconic Pioneer Of Electronic Music


Sam (Garrett Hedlund) races a Program on a light cycle in Tron Legacy

Disney getting Daft Punk to do the Tron: Legacy score was a match made in music heaven. Both the digital and futuristic aesthetics of Tron and Daft Punk go hand in hand – Daft Punk even wears outer space-like helmets during their live performances. Still riding off their historic 2006 Coachella performance, Daft Punk was initially approached to write a single track for Tron: Legacy, which was director Joseph Kosinski’s idea. After some initial hesitation but ultimate determination that Daft Punk best fit the tone for Tron: Legacy, Disney requested a full original score.

Daft Punk’s Tron: Legacy score was a big moment for music lovers too, as it became the only album released between 2005’s Human After All and 2013’s Random Access Memories. Daft Punk even released a full remix album, Tron: Legacy Reconfigured, in 2011 and an expanded edition that included seven additional tracks, adding 18 minutes to the album’s runtime. The synths and various sounds from electronic instruments just fit so well in the world of Tron. Fortunately, Reznor and Ross will keep the sound of Tron: Ares in good hands.

Tron: Ares’ Trailer Is A Relief Regarding Nine Inch Nails’ Work On The Score

​​​​​​Daft Punk Left Some Big Shoes For NIN To Fill

The Tron: Ares trailer provided a lot of relief for fans anxiously awaiting to see how the upcoming sequel will not only look but also sound. The film looks outstanding from the trailer alone, especially paired with the short clip of the NIN soundtrack. If all of Tron: Ares can capture the greatness of the trailer, the film is bound to be a hit.

If all of Tron: Ares can capture the greatness of the trailer, the film is bound to be a hit.

For context, every movie that Reznor and Ross have scored has been Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, with 2021’s The Woman in the Window and 2022’s Empire of Light being the only outliers. Disney and NIN have set the bar high with the new trailer for Tron: Ares.

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