Cinefantastique Online

The Hollywood Reporter informs us that Joseph Kosinski is negotiating to direct a sequel to Disney’s 1982 box office dud TRON. The original was innovative in its use of computer graphics to depict a virtual world, but it was a victim of an era when Disney was uncomfortably edging toward material that would appeal beyond its usual target demographic of families with young children. Jeff Bridges starred as a programmer who got zapped into a computer world, where he had to engage in a series of videogame-style battles. Despite insipid scripting, the film has earned a minor cult reputation over the ensuing decades, leading to interest in a follow-up.

Director Steven Lisberger, who also co-wrote the original TRON, is back on board as a producer. Lisberger wrote a TRON sequel years ago that never got the greenlight; the new film is apparently unrelated to his unused script. He is currently developing another cyber-project, SOUL CODE.

TRON makes two sci-fi revisions in a row for Kosinski, who signed on last month to helm a new version of LOGAN’S RUN, another empty-headed sci-fi spectacular that enjoys perennial popularity with a certain segment of fandom.