Wes Ball is no stranger to telling stories set in dystopian worlds. His newest film Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, is set long after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes, and focuses on a new character named Noa (Owen Teague) who goes on a journey of self-discovery and learns how one vile a powerful bonobo ruler has perverted Caesar’s teachings to enslave other clans.
While Ball almost didn’t take the job because of his feelings towards the continuing what Matt Reeves — who directed Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes had ended, he found a way to extend the story without having it stray away from legacy of the trilogy reboot.
After Ball had completed The Maze Runner film franchise, he and Matt Reeves began working on Mouse Guard. Described as a big mo-cap mouse movie, the film would be an adaptation of David Petersen’s comic of the same name. They even cast Andy Serkis in one of the roles. However, just as they started to get the ball rolling on the film, it was canceled as a result of Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox — which has been rebranded as 20th Century Studios.
Despite the disappointing news, Ball had learned so much about motion-capture technology from his experience on Mouse Guard‘s pre-production that he was offered to direct the next installment of the Planet of the Apes franchise. The film would be a continuation of the reboot trilogy started by Rupert Wyatt and then completed by Reeves. But Ball was reluctant to take the job as he thought the reboot trilogy was already perfect.
“Honestly, I said, ‘No, thanks,’ I mean, it was like: Why do a trilogy? It was fine. A perfect little thing. You know, it’s like: I’m not interested in doing a part four, it’s not really fun. It’s not very interesting.”
After rejecting the offer, Ball went on to discuss other potential projects with his producing partner, Joe Hartwick. Still, the thought of directing the next chapter stuck with Ball. As such, they had a big and bold approach that wouldn’t abandon what has come before. So Ball presented a sizzle reel of sorts that teased the idea of what has happened and what has survived in the wake of Caeser’s death at the end of War of the Planet of the Apes.
Using Apocalypto as a cinematic inspiration, Ball wanted to tell a story set in the same universe and explored what happened to Caesar’s teachings “many generations” after his passing, while also following Noa (Owen Teague) going on a journey of self-discovery, alongside a young human named Nova (Freya Allan), that would determine the future for apes and humans alike. It’s a world that was disappearing, and reverting back to a natural state before it was perverted by humans.
Ball would present the idea to Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, the writers of Rise of the Planet of the Apes. He thought they wouldn’t be interested in doing another Planet of the Apes movie because he believed they saw it as a “cash grab movie.” So when they heard what Ball had to say, they saw its potential and its opportunities to expand to other films that would eventually lead to the 1968 original. Jaffa and Silver, would then recommend Josh Friedman to help punch up the script. And when he read it, he saw how much it was like a Kurosawa film.
Because the film takes place “many generations” after, it allowed Ball to center the story on the idea of legends and legacy. After Caesar died, he became more than just an ape, he would be remember for being an ape who led a revolution. According to Ball, the undetermined gap in time is intentional, so that audiences can see how Caesar’s teachings have changed and grown throughout passing generations.
Ball says that even though Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a standalone film, there are threads that connect it to the prequel trilogy and the ’68 version. He hopes audiences that see his film can go into it without having prior knowledge of the trilogy reboot but are aware of its connections to it. That being said, Ball says those who have watched the last three Planet of the Apes films will be greatly rewarded for their efforts.
“I’m really hoping that an audience that goes to see this movie, at least, is aware that it is connected to other movies, even if they haven’t seen them.”
So, Ball hopes to solve that small problem with a brief dual purpose recap. One would help get the audiences up to speed on what’s happened since War for the Planet of the Apes film. The other would give those unfamiliar with the franchise enough information without having to get lost in what happens later on. So Ball had to navigate his way to crafting a story that wouldn’t explain everything over again. He stresses that this is a film that can be enjoyed by audiences who know and don’t know about the franchise, particularly the recent trilogy.
“We’ve kind of let the audience lean in and do their own math. Instead of giving the audience ‘4,’ we give them ‘2+2.’ I’m asking people to move you to lean in and pay attention. But for the most part, I think it’s very much a standalone film.”
Another one of the ways that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes stays true to the spirit of the franchise while acting as a standalone is in its interpretation of the franchise’s core themes. Ultimately, these films analyze aspects of humanity, explores what it means to be human, and takes a look at whether or not apes and humans can co-exist. As such, it takes a look at greed, compassion, desperation, and empathy.
So, as the writing team was trying to form the script, Ball kept coming back to Rise of the Planet of the Apes, where Maurice was teaching young orangutans: “Apes together strong,” “Apes do not kill apes,” and “knowledge is power.” While the last two films dealt with the second lesson, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, puts an emphasis on “knowledge is power.”
Since “many generations” have passed between the two installments, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a chance to show audiences the importance of persevering history and the dangers of how its perversion could be weaponized. Instead of using a biological virus like the one in the last three films, Ball uses the concept of knowledge as a virus. It can spread easily and once caught it changes the infected. With Proximus corrupting Caesar’s teachings, it would easy to infect those who don’t know any better or have access to history. And we will clearly see that with how his followers bow down to him as if he were the second coming.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ story also draws from real inspiration, especially the current state of the world and how it views the concept of truth and recorded history. Today, powerful figures who wield incredible influence are able to bend and twist the truth in their favor. So “knowledge is power” as one of the film’s themes makes sense because its aware of how fragile the truth is and how those who change it are in danger of becoming the worst version of themselves. As such, Ball didn’t explicitly go and do some analogous thing for the story, he gets straight to the point but get overly preachy about it.
We are trying to just give people an escape. Let people have this this trip through an amazing world that never really seen before and a character that they’ll love. And along the way, you know, make the audience think. Ask them to chew on concepts. We don’t employ the answer, we just kind of throw it out there for them to think about.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes opens in theaters on May 10, 2024