The Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes director explains when he thinks the reboot films should end. Directed by Wes Ball, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes continues the saga of the Planet of the Apes, this time over three centuries after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is set for release on May 10 and features a leading cast including Freya Allan, Peter Macon, William H. Macy, Kevin Durand, and Dichen Lachman.

In an interview with ScreenRant at WonderCon, Ball reveals when he thinks the Planet of the Apes movies should end. According to the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes director, “there’s plenty of runway for this franchise.” Ball even went so far as to say that ‘you could maybe make another three after these three.” He pointed out that “there’s a lot of story to mine there” as well as time, for there is a lot of content from the original movies that has not yet been explored in the sequels. Check out the full quote from Ball below:

I think there’s plenty of runway for this franchise, and I’m sure I’ll be doing something else someday. I don’t know, I’ll leave it there. Let me say this. If I had my druthers, and again, this is not my choice to make, you would not remake the 1968 version. You would make a bunch of them.

You could maybe make another three after these three. You could do a lot, there’s a lot of story to mine there. There’s a lot of time to mine there. Go all the way up to the point where an ape, it looks up and sees a spaceship crashing down. Boom, cut to black. It goes back to ’68, and you start all over again. That would be the way to go. I think in my mind.

Why More Planet of the Apes Films Should Proceed With Caution

In unpacking Ball’s quote, it is important to first note that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is reported to be the first film in what will be a new Apes trilogy. Like Rise of, Dawn of, and War for the Planet of the Apes, this new Apes trilogy will be chronologically set before the events of the 1968 version of Planet of the Apes and its 2001 remake. 1968’s Planet of the Apes spawned four direct sequels, all of which were set after its events as the reign of the apes continued on what was once planet Earth.

The Planet of the Apes films are positioned at a critical point right now. Stylized like a classic Western with a stoic hero and sweeping wide shots, War for the Planet of the Apes was arguably the best in the franchise. Ball’s next installment thus had a lot to live up to, but the early Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes reviews are positive. At the time of writing, the film has an 84% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes with 104 reviews.

Ball also neglects to mention that the first instance of trying to remake the 1968 version of Planet of the Apes did not go well. In 2001, Tim Burton attempted to redo this film, and it was widely panned and seen as tacky. Of course, there are a number of advantages that a remade Planet of the Apes would have now, including access to better special effects, but given the classic nature to the Charlton Heston version, it would be another risk.