‘Planet of the Apes 4’ Casts ‘Witcher’ Star, Shares Epic First Look

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Caesar and Nova poster for 'War for the Planet of the Apes'

Credit: 20th Century Studios

Just a few weeks after Disney’s upcoming Planet of the Apes 4 announced both its official title and its new lead star in Owen Teague, there’s even more casting news, a release window, a brief synopsis, and an official image from the film itself, which looks pretty epic to say the least.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024) will follow on from the Apes reboot trilogy, which started with Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), continued with Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014), and concluded with War for the Planet of the Apes (2017).

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Credit: 20th Century Studios

Related: Every ‘Planet of the Apes’ Movie Ranked From Worst to Best

The three films were each critically acclaimed, and pioneered jaw-dropping motion-capture special effects. These effects improved astronomically with each film, and even put the likes of James Cameron’s Avatar (2009) to shame.

In the films, Andy Serkis plays Caesar, a highly-intelligent chimpanzee who ends up leading an ape rebellion in San Francisco. But this results in a disease known as the “Simian Flu” being transmitted to humans, consequently wiping most of them out in the years that follow.

War for the Planet of the Apes
Credit: 20th Century Studios

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The last film in the series, War for the Planet of the Apes, concludes Caesar’s journey, but after inheriting the entire Apes franchise through the Fox acquisition, Disney wasted no time in green-lighting a film that would follow on canonically from the Apes Trilogy.

Owen Teague, who starred in It (2017), will be playing Caesar’s son Cornelius in the new film, and now, Deadline reports that Freya Allan from The Witcher (2019), and Peter Macon, best known for Seth McFarlane’s The Orville (2017), have also joined the cast.

Freya Allan The Witcher
Credit: Netflix

Allan, 21, confirmed as the human lead, will likely play an adult version of Nova, who was played by Amiah Miller in War for the Planet of the Apes. Nova is a character from the French novel “Planet of the Apes” (1963) by Pierre Boulle, upon which the 1968 film of the same name is based.

That original film spawned four sequels, and was rebooted by visionary director Tim Burton in 2001. But despite a decent run at the box office, the Planet of the Apes (2001) reboot was panned by critics, and the series would eventually be re-imagined with Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

War of the Planet of the Apes
Credit: 20th Century Studios

Related: Disney’s ‘Planet of the Apes 4’ Announces New Lead Star

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will be helmed by The Maze Runner (2014) director Wes Ball, and is scheduled for release in 2024. The official Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Twitter page shared the following image from the new movie, with a caption providing a brief synopsis:

A new saga begins. “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” picking up many years after “War for the Planet of the Apes,” starts production next month and stars Owen Teague, Freya Allan, and Peter Macon. Directed by Wes Ball, “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” arrives in 2024.

Related: Will Disney’s ‘Planet of the Apes’ 4 Ruin a Perfect Trilogy?

The image alone suggests that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will indeed be set many years after War for the Planet of the Apes, as Cornelius (Owen Teague), on horseback, looks out toward a city that has been reclaimed by nature, as its skyscrapers are covered in moss and ferns.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Credit: 20th Century Studios

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will be the tenth movie in the Planet of the Apes film franchise and will be released some time in 2024. 20th Century Studios president Steve Asbell recently confirmed that production would start between late summer and early fall this year.

Earlier this year, Marvel Entertainment confirmed that it will be releasing a new wave of Planet of the Apes comic books.

Do you think Disney should have left Planet of the Apes alone, or are you excited for the upcoming film? Let us know in the comments down below!

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