EXCLUSIVE: Double Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress Gillian Anderson has signed on to join the cast of Tron: Ares, the third film in the Tron sci-fi franchise from Disney.
Anderson joins a buzzy cast that includes Jared Leto, Jodie Turner-Smith (Queen & Slim), and Past Lives breakout Greta Lee. Details of Anderson’s character and the film’s wider plot are currently under wraps, but Disney has confirmed the pic will follow Leto as Ares, a fictional character who crosses over from the world of videogames to planet Earth.
Directing Tron: Ares is Joachim Rønning (Kon-Tiki), who helmed both Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil for Disney following his breakout with 2012’s Kon-Tiki. Evan Peters, Cameron Monaghan, and Sarah Desjardins round out the cast. Jesse Wigutow and Jack Thorne wrote the script, while Emma Ludbrook, Jeffrey Springer, and Leto are producing, with Russell Allen serving as executive producer.
The Tron film series launched with a 1982 feature starring Jeff Bridges as video game creator Kevin Flynn, which was lauded for its visual effects and developed into a cult classic following a tough go in its theatrical run. Next up was the 2010 sequel Tron: Legacy, introducing Garrett Hedlund and Olivia Wilde to the cast, netting a little over $400M upon its debut during the holiday season.
Anderson, now perhaps best known for her roles on The Crown and Sex Education, two shows that finished high-profile runs on Netflix last year, just wrapped work on Scoop, the feature project based on BBC Newsnight’s bombshell 2019 interview with Prince Andrew about his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Anderson plays former BBC journalist Emily Maitlis in the pic. Anderson also stars alongside Jason Isaacs in the forthcoming feature adaptation of Raynor Winn’s bestselling memoir The Salt Path.
She is repped by UTA and Independent Talent Group.
