Fox’s modern Planet of the Apes trilogy came to an end in 2017 with Matt Reeves’ War for the Planet of the Apes and since then we’ve been waiting to see what’s next for the property. Earlier this week it was reported that the next Apes movie, which will hail from the Disney-owned 20th Century Studios, would be another reboot. However, it now sounds like the next Planet of the Apes movie won’t be a reboot after all. That’s according to the film’s director Wes Ball. Take a look:
Well, now we know. Following the lamentable cancellation of his Mouse Guard movie, The Maze Runner director Wes Ball was hired back in December to helm a mysterious new Planet of the Apes movie. We haven’t heard much on the project since then but with the recent reports that the next film would be another reboot of the property, Wes Ball is speaking up to set the record straight.
Following the reboot talk, Wes Ball took to Twitter and while he didn’t reveal what his Planet of the Apes movie will be, he did say what it wouldn’t be. According to Wes Ball, fans shouldn’t worry about the last three films in the franchise being erased with a reboot. He says that Caesar’s legacy will continue, but he leaves the question of how and what that means unanswered, at least for now.
Wes Ball was clearly perturbed at the reports that his film would be rebooting the Planet of the Apes property and the fact that this notion wasn’t run by him. His reaction and invocation of Caesar’s name would seem to indicate that he has a tremendous amount of love and respect for Andy Serkis’ character and what directors Matt Reeves and Rupert Wyatt did with their trilogy of films.
So we now know that Wes Ball’s Planet of the Apes won’t be a reboot of the property and while it may or may not be a direct sequel, it sounds like it will continue the legacy of the past three entries in some way. Whatever that ultimately means, the filmmaker seems excited about it, teasing that surprises are in store. Perhaps it will follow Caesar’s son Cornelius, who knows.
While a reboot wouldn’t necessarily have been surprising after a completed trilogy and now that the property is under new corporate ownership, it wouldn’t have made a ton of sense.
War for the Planet of the Apes was only three years ago. There are lots of reboots nowadays but that seems way too recent to start over again, especially considering that the recent trilogy was excellent and happens to be one of modern cinema’s best. Furthermore, if they were to reboot the property, it would have to be a wildly different take on the material to justify it, and that’s a tricky direction to take for a property with a fanbase.
Opinions will vary, but I tend to think this is good to hear from Wes Ball, that the legacy of the Fox Planet of the Apes movies and Caesar will live on.
We’ll keep you updated on Wes Ball’s Planet of the Apes project as news develops. In the meantime, check out our 2020 Release Schedule to see what movies are headed to theaters this year.
