MCP

The Master Control Program (or MCP), played by David Warner, is the main villain of Tron. It was a rogue computer program created by Ed Dillinger (also played by Warner) that ruled over the world inside ENCOM's mainframe computer. During the rule of the MCP, many programs were enslaved and pitted against the program's henchmen, led by Sark (also played by Warner).

Dillinger wrote the MCP to administer the company's computer network; however, the MCP had the capacity to learn and grew beyond the confines of its original programming. It began to steal data from other systems, and took control of several companies and institutions. Its intelligence - and ambition - grew nearly out of control, and the MCP grew to desire nothing less than world domination. In its own words it said it could run things 900-1200 times better than any human. Dillinger once stated to it that he had made it too greedy, and was surprised that the MCP had made it into the Kremlin's computer system. Dillinger appeared to begin having reservations about letting the MCP get so powerful, which are realized when it threatens to expose his unsavory deeds to the Wall Street Journal if he tries to move against it. It then asks him (although in a tone that makes it more like an order) about a Chinese language program it had requested.

Eventually, however, the MCP caused its own downfall. It digitized former ENCOM programmer Flynn, who had come dangerously close to uncovering Dillinger's schemes. Flynn, in the computer world, allied himself with Tron, a security program; their combined efforts resulted in the deresolution of the MCP by throwing a disk into the base of the MCP. The MCP then reverted back to its original chess program appearance (which, in the digital universe, appeared as an old man in a control chair) followed by this program vanishing as it was deleted.

The MCP would end most of its conversations with Dillinger and Sark with the phrase "End of Line".

He is also seen in Kingdom Hearts II, as the ruler of Ansem the Wise's computer. He is the boss (along with Sark) for the final fight of Tron's world, Space Paranoids.

The MCP possesses god-like abilities within the world of Tron and all transport beams lead to its core within the system. Along these beams, the MCP has the ability to send out power surges. It can, within its core, telekinetically throw programs and torture them with deresolution. It can erect shields at its base for protection. It also has the ability to communicate with Sark via the Carrier. The MCP at one pivotal point was able to transfer all of its functions to Sark, bringing the program back to life as a powerful giant. Regardless of its abilities, the MCP is not all-knowing within the world of Tron as evidenced by the fact the pirate program Clu was able to get so far into a high-clearance memory without the MCP's awareness. To compensate, the MCP depends upon its guards and recognizers.