The “Planet Of The Apes” trilogy reboot—two films of which were directed by Matt Reeves—was a smashing success for 20th Century Fox, the final installment of the picture, “War For The Planet Of The Apes” (2017) grossing nearly $500 million worldwide, with the second installment hitting $710 million. And Hollywood will never let a good franchise just sit idle; hence, we now have “Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes,” arriving in 2024.
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Directed by Wes Ball of the “Maze Runner” franchise, 20th Century Studios’ “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” is meant to be a direct sequel to “War For The Planet Of The Apes,” albeit set years later.
The film features a whole new cast, a new younger generation: Owen Teague (“It”), Freya Allen (“The Witcher”), and Peter Macon (“The Orville”).
This film starts an all-new chapter in the “Planet of the Apes” saga, picking up many years after the conclusion of 2017’s “War for the Planet of the Apes.” The screenplay is by Josh Friedman (“War of the Worlds”), Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver (“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”), and Patrick Aison (“Prey”). Joe Hartwick Jr. (“The Maze Runner” trilogy), Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, and Jason Reed (“Mulan”) are the film’s producers. Peter Chernin and Jenno Topping are the executive producers.
The cast also includes Eka Darville, Kevin Durand, Travis Jeffery, Neil Sandilands, Sara Wiseman, Lydia Peckham, Ras-Samuel Weld A’abzgi, William H. Macy, and Dichen Lachman. Most of the cast aren’t stars, which makes one wonder if 20th Century’s strategy was to keep its cast costs low and put the budget towards the expense of VFX to make for a profitable film.
Plot details other than a ‘War’ continuation have been mostly kept under wraps, but this first trailer and new synopsis do shed some insight into the film and what direction the new franchise will take.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Director Wes Ball breathes new life into the global, epic franchise set several generations in the future following Caesar’s reign, in which apes are the dominant species living harmoniously and humans have been reduced to living in the shadows. As a new tyrannical ape leader builds his empire, one young ape undertakes a harrowing journey that will cause him to question all that he has known about the past and to make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.
“Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes” is due in theaters May 24, 2024, though with “Deadpool 3” likely exiting that spot, look for some ambitious competitor (“Furiosa” maybe? Or ‘Apes’ itself) to fill the May 3, 2024 slot Marvel currently owns. Regardless, for now, the 24 is set, so check out that new trailer below.
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