Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes director Wes Ball explains the reason for the time jump from the previous installment and the absence of Caesar’s son Cornelius.
Speaking to the Inside Total Film podcast, Ball was asked if he had considered catching up on Cornelius and the surviving apes immediately after the events of 2017’s War for the Planet of the Apes.
“For me, no. That’s what I wasn’t interested in doing,” Ball said. “I appreciate some people want that but for me it’s so wrought with dangerous waters to tread into because you’ll always be compared to the previous movies and all that kind of stuff.”
Cornelius was last seen as an infant in War’s final moments when his father, Caesar (Andy Serkis), dies from his wounds after leading the apes to the peaceful oasis. Before his death, however, Caesar’s close confidant, Maurice, promises to share his epic story with his son.
Ball added that his decision to tell a fresh story decades after War was to avoid tampering with a trilogy that had “such good closure.” Instead, the director chose to revisit the world of the apes where parts of Caesar’s legacy are rediscovered by new ape hero Noa (Owen Teague) and distorted by the villain Proximus (Kevin Durand). Despite Cornelius’ absence, Ball teased how Disney and 20th Century Studios could make a potential prequel about his life to bridge the gap between Planet of the Apes movies.
“So, there’s certainly room for someone somewhere to do some of that story – that exists somewhere,” Ball continued. “But for us, we thought the right move was to kind of get some distance from those movies and see how we can start fresh with what was very strong roots. That felt right for us.”
What happens in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes?
The official synopsis reads: “Director Wes Ball breathes new life into the global, epic, franchise set several generations in the future following Caesar’s reign, in which apes are the dominant species living harmoniously and humans have been reduced to living in the shadows. As a new tyrannical ape leader builds his empire, one young ape undertakes a harrowing journey that will cause him to question all that he has known about the past and to make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.”
Owen Teague headlines the latest Apes movie alongside Freya Allan (The Witcher), Peter Macon (The Orville), Eka Darville (Marvel’s Jessica Jones), Kevin Durand (Swamp Thing), Travis Jeffery (Preacher), Neil Sandilands (The Flash), Sara Wiseman (Power Rangers Dino Fury), Lydia Peckham (Cowboy Bebop), Ras-Samuel Welda’abzgi (The Clearing), William H. Macy (Mystery Men), and Dichen Lachman (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.).
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is scheduled for release in theaters on May 24.
