Strong Pieces Takes In The AWESOME Tron Panel [Comic Con 2010]

I've just finished up with the Tron press conference, where I got tons of pictures and got my moment to swoon over Garrett Hedlund as I was walking back to the convention center from the Hilton. He had his car window rolled down to smoke as I was walking by, I looked over and smiled, he looked a bit confused but smiled as well. Only at Comic Con, folks.

Highlights from the press conference as we wait for the Tron panel itself to start:

- Garrett only saw Tron for the first time in 2003 and was blown away, Michael saw it when he was 11, and Olivia wasn't even born when it was released.
- The reason it's been so long since Tron is because Disney was patient and wanted the right hands to craft the sequel. When Jeff Bridges and Bruce Boxleitner saw the creative team and script, they agreed to come back on, no question.
- When asked if it was hard to impress an internet-savvy world, Steven Lisberger said Tron: Legacy would have no problem impressing everyone.
- Michael Sheen, Olivia Wilde and Garrett Hedlund were all adorable the entire time, often whispering and giggling at each other.
- Tron Legacy was an entirely collaborative effort; between the writers, Daft Punk's involvement from the very start with the movie score and the directing.
- Speaking of Daft Punk, Olivia said it was incredibly helpful to have them be a part of the process from the start.
- This is Michael Sheen's first time at Comic Con, which is something exciting for him considering he's a fanboy in his own right.

And now, the Tron: Legacy panel begins!

- Patton Oswalt is moderating again, opening with a joke about furries. Always a good dig, there. "Five minutes of Tron: Legacy every year for the next five years," jokes Oswalt!

- Secret Bruce Boxleitner and Jeff Bridges knife fight tonight? Don't toy with my emotions, Oswalt, I'd be all over that!

- Mini documentary on Tron's impact on pop culture, scored by Daft Punk = epic!

- "Lanky and lean, every nerd girls dream." re: director Joe Kasinski. Hell yes!

- Sreams for Garrett Hedlund! LOUDER yells for Olivia Wilde! LOUDEST yells for Michael Sheen! EVEN LOUDER for Bruce Boxleitner. AND PANDEMONIUM FOR JEFF BRIDGES, as it should be! (And some DUDE!s thrown in for good measure.)

- Tron: Legacy is a true 3D movie, no film conversion after the fact. Also, the suits were fully illuminated while filming, lighting up each other and the environment around them.

- The story at the heart of the movie will be a father/son story.

- Jeff Bridges plays himself at different ages in this movie: Flynn at his age, and his avatar Klue, at age 35. Playing against himself was "psychedelic."

ASIDE: the thought of Garrett Hedlund in a skintight suit makes me swoony.

- Olivia talks about her character Quorra, a fearless warrior who's smart, cool and, in a word, awesome.

- Garrett's training involve parkour, motorcycle training, hand-to-hand combat.

- Michael is ADORABLE, seriously. According to him it's a 4D film because Jeff Bridges brings an extra dimension of awesomeness to it. Truth!

- Bruce Boxleitner looks awesome. He was thrilled to revisit Tron when he heard the movie was going to be made. He hopes everyone will be thrilled by the movie, saying so as the biggest Tron fan there is.

- Jeff says getting a chance to play around with technology was one of the things that drew him to Tron: Legacy, same as Tron.

- Steven Lisberger says good things take a long time to happen, about Tron: Legacy finally coming about.

Now, time for the Tron footage! Excited as all hell for this -- 8 minutes of film footage!!

...that was UNBELIEVABLE. Every little bit of the movie hype is EARNED. The 3D is truly amazing, the music score is intense, and I was truly sad when it was over.

- Now some crowd sound recording, if it's great this will be in the movie! That was actually kind of fun!

- After some Q&A from the audience, they'll be screening a new Tron: Legacy trailer!

- When asked why they chose Daft Punk to score the movie, Kasinski said they were huge fans and it just seemed right to have them be involved with the movie. They've been working on the music for almost 3 years.

- Jeff tries not to spoil anything about the father/son relationship, choosing to say nothing and leave it to fans to find out for themselves when the movie is released.

- When asked how doing Babylon 5 might have prepped him for doing Tron: Legacy, he corrected the questioner that pointing out that Tron came out first and prepared him for B5. Minus one thousand geek points, questioner.

- Twins step up to the mic and share a question on whether Olivia now has a new found appreciation for guys who play video games. Cute! She's also started playing video games now, the last she'd ever played being Duck Hunt. Hot and geeky? Sweet.

- The original Tron will hopefully be re-released in exciting formats in the future!

With questions over, time for the new trailer and time to say goodbye to the Tron panel. I had a great time here today, a great kick off to Comic Con Thursday.

!!!! Surprise video message from Captain Jack Sparrow! Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides will be released next year!

Greatest panel or greatest panel??!

Stay tuned for more updates!