Disney is bringing back the Planet of the Apes franchise, less than two decades after its last revival in 2011. Planet of the Apes is a legendary science fiction series, but it’s also had a complicated history. It all started in 1968 with the original film starring Charlton Heston, which was followed by four sequels through 1973. Then, in 2001, Tim Burton reimagined the story, starting a new version of the Planet of the Apes timeline.
Fox recently revived the Planet of the Apes franchise in 2011 with Rise of the Planet of the Apes. This film launched a new series following the character Caesar, who appeared in two subsequent films: Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes. The 2024 film, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, continued the story started with Rise, but took place many generations later and didn’t feature Caesar.
Fox saw strong results with its series about Caesar and his family, but Disney’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes didn’t perform as well. While the film earned almost $400 million with a $160 million budget – enough for a small profit – it didn’t reach the $700 million success of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
While Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes continued the story after Caesar’s films, it also felt like a new beginning for the series. The filmmakers planned it as the first movie in a new trilogy, centering on the character Noa and Freya Allan’s role as Mae. Because of the film’s success, many fans expected the next Planet of the Apes movie to continue that story, but plans have apparently changed.
A new report suggests the next Planet of the Apes movie will restart the series with a fresh beginning. Director Matt Shakman and writer Josh Friedman are working on a completely original story. While it’s not confirmed that this means a new timeline, it likely won’t continue directly after the events of Kingdom.
While Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes didn’t earn enough money to guarantee a complete three-movie story, Disney still plans to make another Planet of the Apes film. The franchise is well-known and popular, so development is continuing. It’s currently unclear if the next movie will restart the series entirely or simply continue the existing story with new characters, moving beyond Noa and Mae.
The Next Planet of the Apes Movie Will Be A New Beginning For The Franchise
The next Planet of the Apes film will significantly change the direction of the series, whether it restarts the story completely or continues exploring Caesar’s past. A full reboot would be obvious, and Disney might even remake the original movie, creating a new storyline separate from the existing prequels, now that enough time has passed since Tim Burton’s 2001 version.
Shakman and Friedman are considering a fresh direction for their Apes film, potentially exploring a previously untouched era of the franchise. The sequels to the original Planet of the Apes, like Beneath the Planet of the Apes, haven’t been revisited in almost 50 years. There’s still a lot of story to tell after Taylor lands on Earth, and the filmmakers could also delve into the years between War and Kingdom with the prequel series.
| Planet of the Apes Movies | Release Year |
|---|---|
| Planet of the Apes | 1968 |
| Beneath the Planet of the Apes | 1970 |
| Escape from the Planet of the Apes | 1971 |
| Conquest of the Planet of the Apes | 1972 |
| Battle for the Planet of the Apes | 1973 |
| Planet of the Apes (remake) | 2001 |
| Rise of the Planet of the Apes | 2011 |
| Dawn of the Planet of the Apes | 2014 |
| War for the Planet of the Apes | 2017 |
| Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes | 2024 |
Whether the next Planet of the Apes film continues the existing story or jumps to a different part of the prequel series, it will mark a fresh start for the franchise. Kingdom would essentially become a standalone movie, meaning all the storylines it began and its plans for a three-film arc would have to be abandoned. The new film will then need to establish new characters, likely a new timeline, and new challenges for its human characters.
Scrapping the planned Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes movie creates major problems for the future of the franchise. The next Planet of the Apes film will face the same difficulties as Kingdom did – launching a new story without familiar, popular characters like Caesar. Plus, it won’t be able to use any of the characters or plotlines developed for Kingdom, meaning the filmmakers have to start completely fresh.
As a big film fan, this decision feels pretty significant. Disney doesn’t just abandon plans for a whole trilogy unless they’re seriously concerned about how much money the franchise is going to make. This reboot – or even a ‘soft’ reboot – tells me the future of Planet of the Apes is a bit shaky right now. Everything really hinges on the next film doing incredibly well, maybe even surpassing Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes at the box office.
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2026-05-23 16:03