Below is an email sent from a screenwriter who met Steven Lisberger in the summer of 2006 to discuss a proposed sequel to Tron. Contained within are elements of the recent 'Tron: Legacy', written by Adam Horowitz and Eddie Kitsis from 2007 onwards, plus several key plot changes.
Joshua Bowers is a pseudonym - the writer unfortunately passed away in 2008. The email he sent to Lisberger was also sent to a friend of his in the UK, which is now in the public domain.
Alan1
-----Original Message-----
From: Bowers, Joshua <XXXXXXXXXXXXXX@XXX.XXX >
To: Lisberger, S. <XXXXXXXXXXXXX@XXXXXXX.XXX >
Sent: 07/14/06
Subject: Tron sequel ideas
Steven,
Great to meet with you last week. It was good to hear that there may be some movement on a ‘Tron’ sequel and the initial ideas that you shared with me in the meeting were incredibly exciting to hear. As I mentioned at the time, the original ‘Tron’ is one of my all-time favourite films and I am honoured that you may consider using me in some way to help bring this new vision to life.
I’ve given the notes you gave me some serious consideration and, if I may, I like to present my ideas in a loose structure – a ‘mini-treatment’, if you will.
Kevin Flynn has had a son, Ben, who, at the age of 8, is left alone after his father mysteriously disappears. Ben grows up in charge of Encom (which his father became MD of after the events of the original ‘Tron’) but becomes disillusioned when financiers and investors begin to dominate decisions. Throughout his childhood and adolescence, Alan Bradley mentors Ben and as a result keeps a high position in the company for his loyalty. Alan even jokes that the night Kevin Flynn disappeared, he also lost all data for his Tron program (‘Perhaps wherever your father is, Tron is too.’) Whilst the young Ben is more reactionary towards ‘the suits’, Alan keeps his cool and steers Ben in the right direction – even bailing him from a night in jail after Ben is arrested for speeding on his motorcycle.
One night, Alan comes to Ben with bad news. The Encom board plans to build a new advanced technology centre, to be located at the now disused block which contains ‘Flynn’s Arcade’. Ben has always ensured that the building, although closed for many years, has remained untouched, convinced his father will return there one day. Encom lawyers have found a loophole that will give Ben no legal comeback to their wish to knock it down – despite their assurances the Arcade will remain in place as a ‘museum piece’.
Distraught, Ben visits Flynn’s Arcade. It remains untouched, covered in dust. Upstairs, in his father’s office, Ben breaks down in frustration, flinging papers and books across the room in anger. A water cooler breaks, sending water across the floor and towards a dusty ‘Space Paranoids’ cabinet. Gurgling can be heard, and as a result Ben discovers a secret room that hides an old, chunky computer. Intrigued, Ben boots up the machine and tries to access his father’s computer. What he doesn’t notice, however, is the laser at the back of the room, pointing at the chair in front of the screen. Before he realises it, Ben disappears.
The Grid 2.0. Ben, bewildered, discovers he is in a massive Comms Tower. Before he can get his bearings, he is engulfed by an updated Recognizer. Guards on the ship query his identity, and when he can’t satisfy their questions, take him on board transport him and other seized programs across Grid City to the Games Arena.
The Games Arena is a massive colosseum, with a baying crowd of thousands all enjoying disc battles. The game floor itself is a pyramid structure, meaning many contestants face off against each other at the base, the survivor then transported upwards as each level is whittled down. As the Arena announcer explains for us, at the top awaits Rez, the champion of champions, who has never been defeated. Repeats of previous fights on giant screens show Rez kneeling next to his fallen victim’s identity discs, before keeping it as a trophy.
By luck and sheer chance, Ben arrives in the top level, to face off against Rez – a silent warrior in a black mask who uses two discs to battle. Ben defends well but is cut on the arm during the fight – as Rez moves in for the kill, he notices blood fall from the wound. Rez stops, pulling Ben up and facing him towards a floating ship at the top of the Arena.
A figure, clearly the ruler of the City, looks down. Across the tannoy, the figure asks for the identity of Ben. Ben explains he is looking for his father, Kevin Flynn. The crowd hush in stunned silence. The figure asks ‘Are you a User?’ Ben replies, slightly unsure, ‘Yes?’ The crowd erupt in hatred.
Rez escorts Ben to the box, who is amazed to discover the figure is in fact his father, unaged from the day he left. Ben begins to ask him questions, but the figure reveals himself to be, in fact, not Kevin Flynn (‘I’m not your father. Nevertheless I’m very pleased to meet you.’) The figure introduces himself as Clu (‘You are his forgotten son. I am his greatest creation’). He speaks to the Arena audience. ‘Programs! This...User... claims to be the son of the great Kevin Flynn! Let us show him how in AWE we are of our visitor!’ The figure wheels on Ben. ‘Follow me’
Rez and Clu, with Ben in tow, return to the Game Floor. It is time for a Light Cycle battle – five vs five – the likes of which you can’t even imagine. The Cycles now twist, turn, glide and jump – it’s mind blowing. Ultimately it’s Rez and Clu against Ben, but just before Clu can deliver a killing blow, a rescuer appears, diving into the Game Floor on a Light Rider – a four wheeled off-road version of a Light Cycle. The door opens and a woman inside yells at Ben to get in, before blowing a hole in the side of the Arena and escaping. Rez, Flynn and guards chase them through Grid City before the Rider evades the pursuit in the wastes of the Wilderness – a desolate rocky outland where the Grid has not yet expanded.
Driving through the Wilderness, the female driver introduces herself as Cora. She will take Ben to meet someone who can help him. They drive to a distant outpost hidden on a mountain overlooking the majesty of Grid City.
Inside, Ben discovers his father, the real Kevin Flynn, aged, tired, and living alone with only Cora as company. Kevin is overwhelmed to see his son, but then refuses to accept Ben’s offer to return back home.
Perhaps is now the time to explain the chain of events since the original film – a series of flashbacks may help with this. After overthrowing the MCP and regaining ownership of Encom, Kevin realised he could travel to and from the Grid. He saw the opportunity to build a new Grid, one of perfection which could change mankind for the better. The Grid we are in was built from scratch by Kevin, who brought across Tron from the original Encom network. Kevin also created Clu 2.0 as a copy of himself who could work with them – Clu hasn’t aged from the day of his creation, giving us ‘Young Flynn’. Early versions of the Grid didn’t work – glitches would create ‘viruses’, violent programs that tried to destroy the Grid from within. While Clu oversaw the running of the Grid while Tron provided security, Flynn began to experiment combining DNA data with program data, and soon created a new type of program – Cora (‘the core program’). The potential for Cora is immense – diseases could be cured, wounds could be healed, age could be halted, all from the programmed DNA intelligence within Cora. And Cora isn’t perfect. That’s what made her such a success – her imperfections brought her closer to humanity. And as a result, Cora can leave the Grid and return to reality with Flynn. She has a childlike fascination, and Flynn has taught her about reality by bringing various classic novels to her through the laser – her favourite being ‘Alice In Wonderland’.
Clu, however, refused to believe that perfection was unattainable – in his quest to achieve it he has become a utilitarian dictator ruling over Grid City with an iron fist. He refused to believe that the Grid would fail, and refused to believe that Cora was, in essence, Clu’s successor. With anger and jealousy, Clu organised a coup against Flynn, at the same time attempting to derez Cora, trying to steal the data from her identity disc in order to use it himself to exit the Grid. Tron saved Cora and sacrificed himself in order to allow both Flynn and Cora to escape, but with the whole of Grid City under Clu’s control and against the pair, they were forced to flee into the Wilderness. The only way they can get back to reality is through the Comms Tower, now heavily guarded and impossible to breach.
Ben wants to fight his way through, but Kevin persuades him this is folly. Now that Clu knows the three are still alive, the defences will be impenetrable.
Ben then asks about the Internet. His father is confused – at the time he became trapped within the Grid, the Internet was in its infancy. Locked away from the real world, Kevin is stunned to hear of the growth of the World Wide Web, of social networking, of mobile phones and WiFi -although Flynn has aged 30 years, the Grid has been in existence for the equivalent of 100. Ben asks if there is some way to access the ‘Net – if they can get out of the Grid, they can contact Alan Bradley who can help them from the outside. Encom has continued to experiment with laser technology and Ben thinks Bradley would be able to get them to escape into the Encom HQ.
Kevin remembers an additional access point – it was used as a backup comms point and links to a public telephone. Ben realises that now public phone lines can handle massive data streams, they’ll be able to travel through and enter Bradley’s home network, enabling them to communicate with him from within the system.
This secondary Comms Tower has been forgotten about, but it is across the Grid and many miles across the Wilderness. Now that Clu is on the hunt, they need a fast way to get there.
Cora remembers the Solar Sailer – a new version that was used to transport any programs from the Comms Tower to the Grid. It will be shut down, but Kevin Flynn has the capability to provide power – ‘I built this place with my fingers, remember that?’ He cannot, however, destroy Grid City. The Grid is his legacy, and he is not willing to let it go. Likewise he cannot delete Clu – the only way Clu can be defeated is for Flynn to integrate him back into his body – which may kill both of them.
Ben volunteers to distract Clu and Rez long enough to allow his father and Cora to leave on the Solar Sailer. Kevin refuses – it is imperative that his son and Cora get out before him, and nevertheless Clu can’t kill him. Ben worries that his father is more concerned about Cora, but reluctantly agrees. Ben and Cora leave for Grid City in her car, while Kevin follows in his classic personal Light Cycle – designed in the original style, it’s the fastest vehicle in the network.
In Grid City, the three arrive at the Solar Sailer. Kevin starts to power up the massive craft, but they are ambushed by Rez and his guards. Kevin and Cora escape on the Sailer, but Ben is captured by Rez. He is taken to Clu aboard a floating Cruiser – although Ben will not reveal where his father and Cora have gone, Clu deduces there is another Comms port at the end of the Sailer path. Clu departs on his massive Command Ship in an effort to intercept Flynn and Cora before they can enter the Web network, leaving Rez to kill Ben.
Instead, however, Rez takes Ben to his private quarters, filled with identity discs. For the first time, Rez speaks, explaining that after every battle he kept the losers identity disc for one purpose. Rez removes his helmet. ‘So when the time comes, your father may bring them back.’ Ben is amazed to discover Rez is actually Tron.
Defending Flynn and Cora from Clu, Tron managed to escape by using two identity discs. Using the second disc as a false identity (hence ‘Rez) Tron became Clu’s personal warrior, keeping an eye on him and hoping that one day he would be able to help Flynn and Cora once again. That time is now, but no vehicle on the Grid will be able to catch up the Command Ship and Solar Sailer.
No vehicle, that is, except one. Ben jumps into his father’s Light Cycle, while Tron follows as best he can in a Light Glider – an airplane version of a Light Cycle.
Within sight of the Web Comms Tower, Clu’s Command Ship intercepts the Solar Sailer. His guards battle Flynn and Cora, and capture them, detaining them on board the ship. They are stunned to discover on board are several thousand dormant programs. Clu explains his plan – he will use Cora’s identity disc to copy the DNA data into his army, using the combination technology to bring it into the real world in an effort to ‘bring perfection’. Flynn, realising just how irrational Clu has become, tries to explain that perfection is impossible, that he is sorry, that he realises now that he made a mistake. Furious, Clu throws his disc at Cora, trying instead to kill her.
It’s stopped, however, by the energy wall of Ben Flynn’s Light Cycle, who managed to leap from a canyon wall into the Command Ship. Ben prepares to face off against Clu in an effort to protect his father, but Kevin eases him to one side. Kevin must face Clu himself – it is the only way he can be stopped. Both Cora and Ben try to prevent him, but Kevin is fully aware of the risks. He says goodbye to his son and Cora, and turns towards Clu. Ben tries desperately to stop him, but Cora holds him back, knowing this is the only way to end it.
Clu is confused, but still angry. Kevin walks towards him, opening his arms. Clu threatens to throw his disc to kill his creator, but then breaks down, overwhelmed by emotion for his ‘father’. Kevin apologises once more, and envelops Clu in his arms. Clu is integrated back into Flynn, but the power of the amalgamation causes an detonation of power, which rocks the massive Command Ship.
The Command Ship begins to explode, breaking up into sections. Ben and Cora run through the ship in a vain hope of escaping, but all seems lost – until Tron’s Light Glider swoops into the hanger. Picking them up, Tron flies through the collapsing vessel, bursting through a fireball into safety.
Tron lands next to the Comms Tower, leading a distraught Ben and Cora to the beam of light that will transport them into the Internet. Ben invites Tron to join them, but Tron declines, insisting his job is to rebuild the Grid and find Kevin Flynn. When Ben tells him that his father is dead, Tron shakes his head. ‘Flynn is still here, Ben. It’s up to me to find him.’
Ben and Cora step into the light. Ben holds his identity disc aloft, and the pair disappear into the wherever.
Alan Bradley is woken by a pinging noise from his laptop computer. Flicking it open, he notices he has received an email. It reads as follows: ‘Hi Alan. I think we might need your help. Ben.’
Roll credits.
I also had a thought for a post credit sequence that may be a lead to a second sequel: A young man shuts his laptop in a presentation room for Encom. Several board members nod their heads, congratulating him. They seem very interested in his language translation program, and will be in touch very soon to discuss implementing it into their next operating system. The young man walks out of the building, and into a car. He opens the laptop again, and speaks to it: ‘What did you think?’ A familiar deep voice replies from the laptop: ‘IMPRESSIVE, MASTER DILLINGER. YOUR FATHER WOULD HAVE BEEN PROUD. END OF LINE.’
I sincerely hope you find this treatment of interest. As I mentioned at our meeting, the original story is timeless and a classic – I can only hope I have given your ideas justice. Any feedback would be gratefully appreciated and I look forward to hearing from you again.
Kind regards,
Joshua
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