Tron: Ares Star Learned to Ride Motorcycles Prepping for End of World

Jodie Turner-Smith plays Athena in the movie, and riding motorcycles is essential to the character. Luckily, she already had a solid riding skillset.

By: Janaki Jitchotvisut

Oct 13, 2025 at 8:21am ET

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If you're at all familiar with the Tron franchise, you know that motorcycles (or light cycles, originally designed by Syd Mead, to be more specific) are an integral part of the lore. So naturally, when the latest entry in the franchise, Tron: Ares was announced, the inclusion of a whole lot of light cycle action was a given.

What wasn't necessarily a given, however, was who would be riding those light cycles, and what kinds of real-life riding skills they might have. Even among actors, there are enthusiasts like Keanu Reeves and Katee Sackhoff, and then there are folks who partake in special training in order to be able to perform their roles.

And then there's Jodie Turner-Smith, who plays the character Athena in Tron: Ares. (No, I haven't seen the movie yet, so I can't tell you anything about it and I don't want spoilers.)

In an exclusive interview with People Magazine to promote the film, she told the entertainment publication that she already had motorcycle skills before the movie because "[she's] trying to collect survival skills for when, inevitably, society completely collapses. Film and television has really given me the ability to work on weapons training. So that's already in the pocket."

She added, "I need to be able to operate as many kinds of motor vehicles as possible in preparation for the impending apocalypse. I want to make sure that I know how to drive a boat and a helicopter." There's good news for Turner-Smith on that front, then, since as we've mentioned in the past, if you can ride a motorcycle, you're apparently on a good path to learn how to fly a helicopter.

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Tron: Ares opened in US theaters on October 10, 2025, and opened slightly earlier in some international markets on October 8, 2025. It marks the third theatrically released film in the franchise.

In between the original 1982 Tron film and today, there's also previously been a short film called Tron: The Next Day that takes place directly after Tron: Legacy, as well as a cancelled-too-soon-and-on-a-frustrating-cliffhanger animated series called Tron: Uprising in the early 2000s.