Disney almost did the most “on-the-nose” thing possible for Tron: Ares. They nearly made artificial intelligence an actual character. Not just a character pretending to be AI. A real generative AI, feeding off the script in real time and spitting out dialogue on set. Sounds wild? It is. But it almost happened.
According to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, Disney explored the idea of having an AI-generated character in Tron: Ares, the long-awaited third film in the Tron series, set for release on October 10, 2025. The pitch was a human actor would voice the character, but the lines would be created by an AI program mid-scene, using a basic prompt and whatever the other characters said before it.
Internally, some Disney execs were hyped about the marketing potential. The idea was that people might show up just to see how well AI can act. But while the tech was intriguing, the timing wasn’t. The idea surfaced during the tense WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, where AI was already Public Enemy No. 1. Creatives were (and still are) deeply skeptical about AI taking over jobs, and Disney, perhaps wisely, pulled the plug after being warned not to risk the bad publicity. Probably a good call. The last thing Tron needed was to be picketed for having an AI “actor” that didn’t pay union dues.
Ironically, Tron: Ares is one of the few films where using generative AI might have made thematic sense. The entire movie is about a rogue AI program crossing into the real world. So yeah, if you’re gonna test this sort of thing anywhere, this was the franchise. But even that wasn’t enough to justify the potential PR nightmare.
It wasn’t just Tron: Ares under AI consideration either. Disney reportedly reached out to an AI company about using deepfake tech for the live-action Moana remake. The goal was to supercharge Dwayne Johnson’s already god-like physique into something even more demigod. He gave the go-ahead, but the deal fell apart when Disney realized the AI company would technically own the generated content. That’s a big no from the House of Mouse.
While studios are clearly curious about how far they can push AI, audiences aren’t sold. Just look at an episode of The Studio on Apple TV+, where viewers literally chant “F*** AI” when a character suggests using it in a film. On social media, AI buzz is already cooling off. There are fewer Midjourney images and fewer AI-generated Drake and Kanye remixes. Will movies follow the same pattern?
For now, maybe. But if the tech gets better and cheaper, don’t be surprised if we see AI-generated characters sneaking their way back into your favourite blockbusters. Just hopefully not as the star.
