The new Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy ended five years ago, but Caesar’s (Andy Serkis) legacy will live on in the fourth installment of the film franchise titled “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.” And 20th Century Studios has announced that production for the sequel, which will be directed by Wes Ball (“The Maze Runner” trilogy), heads into production next month.
And to celebrate, the studio has unveiled a brand-new piece of concept art revealing a new ape riding on horseback, while calling over a bird. Surrounding him are the remnants of humankind’s buildings now covered in lush greenery, and a waterfall that runs clearly. A sign that the Earth is returning to what it once was before it was polluted by humans – who would eventually either be wiped by a virus of their own creation, or the virus regressed their intelligence into a primate state. So it should be interesting to see where Earth is now at this point and how the human and ape dynamics have changed.
While the press release doesn’t provide too much information on “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” we know that the 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.
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” stars Owen Teague (“It”), Freya Allen (“The Witcher”) and Peter Macon (“The Orville”).
“Planet of the Apes” is one of 20th Century Studios’ most popular and enduring franchises, amassing more than $1.7 billion worldwide. Based on a novel by Pierre Boulle, the first film in the series was released by Twentieth Century-Fox in 1968 and went on to become one of the year’s biggest hits, winning a special Academy Award® and followed by four theatrical sequels and two television series. A remake, “Planet of the Apes,” directed by Tim Burton, was released in 2001, then a 2011 reboot, “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” was followed by two sequels, 2014’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” and 2017’s “War for the Planet of the Apes.”
No word yet on when the film hit theaters, but we can expect to see it sometime in 2024.
