Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the latest in what has become the shockingly long-running Planet of the Apes series, which now sits at four movies and counting. And if its creators have anything to say, it's far from finished. In fact, we might only be at the midpoint.
In a new THR interview on the occasion of Kingdom of the Planets of the Apes' release, creators Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa, who penned the original Rise of the Planet of the Apes, hinted at what's to come for the franchise. According to Jaffa, Kingdom of the Planets sets the foundation for "at least two more movies with the characters," which would in effect make it the beginning of another trilogy.
But they might not even be done after that.
"When you first came up with this idea, the Apes franchise way back, you saw nine movies. We thought, 'This is crazy ambitious.' But here we are. We’re at four," Silver says.
Jaffa, for his part, envisioned nine movies, adding, "I don’t know if we’ll make it to nine. I would love it. We’ve spoken to not just Wes and Josh and [producer] Joe Hartwick Jr., but to Steve Asbell and Scott Aversano at 20th about what these next movies can be."
Where the series goes next, it will be a remarkable run for the Planets of the Apes saga, which kicked off with 2011's Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the latest movie in the series, featuring a lush post-apocalyptic world fully ruled by intelligent apes. It stars Owen Teague in the lead role as Noa, a young chimpanzee hunter, who joins in a journey with a young woman named Mae (Frey Allan).
The original movie was lauded for its innovative motion capture techniques featuring Andy Serkis, who is best-known for his work as Gollum in the original Lord of the Rings. We wrote in our review of the latest movie, "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes isn't as emotionally complex as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes or War for the Planet of the Apes, and isn’t attempting to punch you in the gut like those films do. But as this series enters its post-Caesar, Disney-owned era, Planet of the Apes is still on remarkably solid footing.
"Advancing the timeline is a smart move, allowing director Wes Ball to depict a dramatically changed world while screenwriter Josh Friedman shifts gears into an appealing adventure mode. This is a different Planet of the Apes, but it still feels like it fits in with what came before."
Even if it manages to eventually get to nine movies, though, it won't be able to connect up with the original movies. Alas. Either way, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is out today, and you can check in on whether it has a post-credits scene right here.
Kat Bailey is IGN's News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.
