Disney’s new Planet of the Apes moviewas announced earlier in the week. Now, director Wes Ball says he’s working on making it ‘awesome’. This will mark one of the first huge Fox titles to get the green light after the Disney acquisition earlier this year.
The franchise received a breath of fresh air in 2011 when it was rebooted withRise of the Planet of the Apes. Both Matt Reeves and Andy Serkis said they wanted to make more movies after 2017’sWar for the Planet of the Apes, though it doesn’t look like they will be directly involved at this point in time. It’s unclear if Ball’s new movie will fit in with the reboot trilogy or if it will be something brand-new.
AfterPlanet of the Apes 4was announced, Wes Ball addressed the situation on social media. Fans of the original franchise weren’t sure what to make of the news since the critically acclaimed reboot trilogy just wrapped up, but Ball assures fans he has something new to say and has a love for the franchise.Wes Ballhad this to say about hisPlanet of the Apesproject.
“I’ll say this about Apes. I grew up on the original and absolutely love the previous trilogy. I would only do this if I felt I could offer something special while still honoring what’s come before. We have something that’s shaping up to be an awesome chapter to this franchise… It also doesn’t hurt I’m friends with all the folks behind these movies.”
The originalPlanet of the Apesmovie came out in 1968 and starred Charlton Heston as an astronaut who lands on a strange planet. The astronaut soon discovers thatadvanced apes rule over primitive humans on the planet, which is later revealed to be Earth after an apocalyptic nuclear war. The movie was a box office and critical hit, going on to spawn a TV series in the 1970s, along with multiple sequels.
Tim Burton remadePlanet of the Apesin 2001, but it was not the hit he and the studio were hoping for, to put it mildly. Despite this hiccup, interest in the franchise remained, which is whyRise of the Planet of the Apeswas able to come out and receive praise from fans of the franchise and critics. The reboot trilogy was able to build off of the ideas set forth in the first movie and expand upon them, while serving as an origin story explaining how the apes came to take over.
In addition, thePlanet of the Apes reboot trilogypushed the envelope of motion capture technology. Wes Ball has his work cut out for him, but he believes he can add something to the franchise. Ball previously helmed theMaze Runnertrilogy, which was able to gross over $1 billion at the box office. More news on the director’s upcomingPlanet of the Apesproject is expected to be announced soon. You can check outWes Ball’s Twitterresponse below.
