Tron: Legacy Producer Consulted on Walt Disney World’s New Tron: Lightcycle Ride

Disney is going all-in on The Grid. In addition to pushing a third film into earnest development after years in purgatory, the Mouse will soon open TRON Lightcycle / Run, an epic ride at Walt Disney World Resort. As has become a staple of the company’s Imagineers, those behind the construction of the ride wanted it to be as faithful to the films as possible. Because of that commitment, many people involved in the franchise were consulted on the design and development of the roller coaster, including Tron: Legacy producer Justin Springer.

“Disney does such a good job of making sure these rides not only have story to them, aren’t just a thrill ride, but also that they connect to the mythology of whatever franchise in which they’re based,” Springer told us at Walt Disney World’s All The Disney Thrills event this week. “And so early on, I certainly was involved in conversations about the stories that we had explored, the overall mythology, which I spent a lot of time helping to keep track of, and also shared a lot of artwork from Tron: Legacy and other Tron things that I worked on just to help inform.”

Though the ride does take some certain liberties in its storytelling, Springer added that it does feel seamless jumping from film 

“Honestly, having been on the ride a bunch of times now, I think the way in which they integrated the music and they integrated a lot of the design, it feels seamless. It feels directly derived from the world that we have created on the screen,” the filmmaker added. “And I think that’s because they have such an attention to those details. Even walking through it, there’s tons of tiny little graphics and little moments and shapes that are things that we talked about and generated out of our art department 12 years ago.”

Walt Disney World has announced the opening date for its long-awaited new roller coaster TRON Lightcycle / Run. The new TRON-themed roller coaster opens on April 4, 2023. The new roller coaster will send riders into “The Grid” for a special Lightcycle race, with players trying to clear through eight Energy Gates before a rival team.