Five years after the last installment in the Planet of the Apes saga, a new entry in the franchise has been announced in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. The film, set to be released in 2024, is set many years after the events of 2017's War for the Planet of the Apes.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will be directed by Wes Ball (the Maze Runner trilogy) from a script by Rise of the Planet of the Apes writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, Josh Friedman, and Patrick AIson, who recently penned the Predator prequel Prey. The film will star Owen Teague, Freya Allen, and Peter Macon.
Though production won't begin until next month, 20th Century Studios released a first look at concept art for the movie, showing an ape riding on horseback, accompanied by what appears to be a trained bird of prey, against the backdrop of crumbling buildings overgrown with greenery.
"Planet of the Apes is one of the most iconic and storied science fiction franchises in film history, as well as being an indelible part of our studio's legacy," 20th Century Studios president Steve Asbell said upon the announcement. "With Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, we are privileged to continue the series' tradition of imaginative, thought-provoking cinema, and can't wait to share Wes' extraordinary vision for this new chapter with audiences in 2024."
The Planet of the Apes franchise began with the 1968 film of the same name, starring Charlton Heston, which spawned four sequels, a live-action TV spinoff, and an animated series. The orignal movie earned nominations for Best Costume Design and Best Original Score at the 41st Oscars, and won an honorary Oscar for makeup artist John Chambers.
In 2001, Tim Burton helmed a remake starring Mark Wahlberg, but it was 2011's Rise of the Planet of the Apes that successfully rebooted the series, in part due to Andy Serkis and his revolutionary motion capture performance work as the chimpanzee, Caesar. Rise of the Planet of the Apes and its sequels, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) and War for the Planet of the Apes (2017), were all Oscar-nominated for Best Visual Effects.
It is currently unknown if Serkis will return in any capacity for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
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