Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes Stars On Caesar’s Legacy & Mae’s Secrets

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes picks up many generations after the events of War of the Planet of the Apes and follows a new young hero named Noa, Chimpanzee from the Eagle Clan. Noa is thrust into a journey to find his loved ones after strange apes covered in metal attack his village. Along the way, he meets Raka, an orangutan devoted to an ancient ape named Caesar, and Mae, an enigmatic human girl who is being hunted. The three work together to get to the tyrannical ape king, Proximus Caesar, who is responsible for Noa’s loss. As Noa learns more about the complexities of the world, he will be forced to make a decision that could have drastic implications for all of ape-kind.

Wes Ball picks up the torch of the Planet of the Apes franchise by weaving together elements from the original Planet of the Apes movie and the Caesar trilogy while delivering a compelling new story with complicated characters. Weta brings a lush planet to life, with aspects of humanity still visible as nature takes over. Owen Teague leads the impressive Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes cast, with Peter Macon, Kevin Durand, and Freya Allan delivering powerful, nuanced performances.

Screen Rant interviewed Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes stars Freya Allen and Peter Macon. Allen explained how she approached playing Mae and the dynamic between Mae and Noa. Macon broke down why Raka is so steadfast in his devotion to the legacy of Caesar and why he is overjoyed to share it with Noa. The duo also praised Ball’s skills as a director.

Freya Allan Breaks Down Her Approach To Playing Mae: “It Was A Double Layered Thing”

Image via 20th Century Studios

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Allan explained how she approached playing Mae, a human in the world of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. There are a number of scenes where she needs to perform and emote without using dialogue while infusing the performance with layers that hint at the larger mystery surrounding her. Allan, as one of the few actors not performing in motion capture suits, also filmed her scenes without her co-stars.

Freya Allan: Yeah, that was definitely something to figure out was how is Mae going to play a feral human? So it was a double layered thing to get my head around. I think I was very much leaning on this kind of rabbit in headlights quality. [I was] a woodlouse; physically I felt very much like I was always very small.

And then gradually I come out of that shell, and I think that helped me in the fact that she’s pretending, but also there’s an element of kind of reality in it in terms of she’s faced with these apes that’s terrifying and she’s never been that close to them before.

But then also there being the small kind of Easter eggs of the fact that her run is different to the feral humans and things like that, which you can pick up on because she sees the feral humans for the first time in the movie. So it’s all her own interpretation, but then while having to also convince audiences she is so it was a balance to strike.

Peter Macon Explains Raka’s Devotion To Caesar’s Philosophies: “That’s All He Has Left”

Raka is a devoted follower of Caesar’s philosophies, but where Proximus Caesar has used them to fuel his tyrannical reign, Raka sees them as an inspiration for peace. Macon broke down why Raka holds onto these ideals so tightly and why they are so important, especially at this point in the evolution of the apes.

Peter Macon: Because it’s all they have. That’s all he has left, that’s all that’s left of Caesar. Even though he wasn’t around the legacy of Caesar and then these simple rules, not rules, but these simple philosophies or simple worldviews that apes shall not kill apes, apes together strong, and apes and humans live side by side. Now that’s an interesting one to unpack because stories and fables tend to last longer than the actual truth or they get shaped, changed, and morphed.

Literally the notion of what it means to be an ape, that’s what he’s grown up on and been programmed to believe. That expresses a worldview that is inclusive in the face of the masks. In the twisting of that notion of how they’re behaving is not right in his world. We’re in the bronze age in terms of the apes and not only the weaponry and the tools, but the consciousness. The consciousness is growing and he’s absolutely adamant about the consciousness growing from a place of those things.

Caesar was why we are the way we are and what he had to say. The significance of those rules, I will say is what’s going to guide us. If you don’t know where you’ve come from, you don’t know where you’re going.So that’s essentially the reason why he believes what he believes.

Yeah, I love that Raka felt like the most hopeful of any of the characters in the movie. He had this hope for a better future that I don’t feel like anyone else has really keyed into yet. So I thought that was very cool.

Peter Macon: The irony behind that is, is that he’s not 100% correct. That’s what I mean by stories and fables lasting longer than the truth. The truth of the matter is when humans and apes lived side by side apes were in cages, and that’s exactly what Proximus rebelling against. That’s a sad irony that even though his worldview is inclusive, he’s a little off on his math. I think that that’s a lot like life, we’re a little off on our math.

I think that lends itself to a greater storytelling that is not saying that this is the hero, this is the villain. It’s not absolute. I think that it begs and it asks us as audience the question of how do we juggle all these things together and try to find a common denominator. So yeah, I think it’s ironic that he is seen as the sage of wisdom, but his wisdom is off a little bit. So irony is us 100%.

Peter & Freya Share Believe Noa Is “A Chance To Create Another Disciple Of Caesar”

Both Raka and Mae have interesting relationships with Noa that grow throughout the movie. However, the dynamic between Mae and Noa is especially compelling because of the inherent distrust they have for one another as a human and an ape. They are forced to question their understanding of each other as they learn more. Allan revealed her mindset as Mae in the scenes with Noa and how she is impacted by the connection she feels to this ape.

Freya Allan: It’s interesting because it always feels so differently to getting to watch it then as a viewer. When we were playing that relationship, it really felt like Mae was watching him and just kind of terrified of how much of herself she could see in him, how much relatability there was, and how much of a mirror was being held up between the two of them. It’s easier for her to not see that in order to do the mission she wants to do, but she’s challenged there.

So when I was playing that, there were some scenes that aren’t in the film that were quite pivotal for me personally, that I really feel they connected because the people that they’ve loved have been killed by the same apes, if anything. If anything is symbolic of how similar they actually are it’s that. And so I think there was kind of a great fear in that. So it was all about the complexity of acknowledging that, but wanting to stick to what you originally were out to do.

So I think that’s constantly kind of a conflict or not a conflict becasue I think ultimately she has to go forward with what she’s been meant to do her whole life and what people before her that she cared about tried to do. So that is ultimately what she’s going to do, but it’s made more difficult by that relationship with Noa. I think it’s been made more painful because of that. So yeah, it’s very interesting what they do for one another.

Peter, can you talk about Raka’s relationship with Noa, an ape who’s never heard of Caesar?

Peter Macon: It’s wonderful because Raka is an archeologist and he’s a bit of a scientist. He’s a bit of a experiment. Noa literally falls into his lap, it is a chance for him to, he’s a teacher and he loves to help this young ape to help him discover the world as it really is and not just like this myopic viewpoint.

So he’s almost like he’s a chance to create another disciple of Caesar, a chance to spread that message one ape at a time. With a fresh palette and someone who doesn’t know anything about the world as it is and helping him, it’s very paternal. It’s very older brother, very crazy old uncle. It’s the ultimate joy for Raka to help shape a young mind when there are other jaded and corrupted, I suppose, [apes] who’ve diverted from that message.

So it’s almost like people come to your door and they knock. Have you heard the good news? It’s a lot like that. And so it’s just joy, joy, joy that he can help him spread this message and help him understand the world from this view in shaping a young mind.

Peter & Freya Rave About Wes Ball’s Excitement & “Inspiring” Directing Abilities

Ball is a long-time fan of the franchise. He has discussed how he was enraptured by the original Planet of the Apes and his appreciation for Caesar as a great hero. That excitement is not only palpable when watching the movie but also in how he collaborated with the cast. Allan and Macon discussed why Ball was the perfect director to carry on the mantle of this franchise and shared stories about working with him on Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

Freya Allan: You don’t always get a director that can do both. That has the vision, the visuals, and the world building, but is also extremely empathetic and intelligent in his direction for the actors. I was constantly in awe at how he was able to really give notes from a perspective that you hadn’t thought of because we do so much work before and you think you know everything. And so for a director to be able to come in and surprise you with something that is a good director.

He was very good at pressing the buttons he needed to press and just being very empathetic to what he could do to help you if you needed it. Especially with me having to do all my scenes on my own as well, having him beside me through that really made the process so much better because I could trust him and rely on him. He was just the rock for everyone

Peter Macon: And nobody was more excited.

Freya Allan: He’s just so inspiring. You come onto set and he makes you excited

Peter Macon: Him telling the story. It’d be like-

Freya Allan: Every sound effect

Peter Macon: the film of West telling the story of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, that’s the movie. He could sit down by campfire and he could tell you the story and his excitement, his wonder, you just watch him, a it’ss like, This guy, he’s the most excited person on the whole crew. He’s more excited about this film than anybody, and it’s excitable as he’s telling it to you like you’re a little kid. And I feel like a little kid when I’m listening to him, I’m like, Yeah, yeah, yeah, and this is next. And the sound effects.

Freya Allan: I had a meeting about, literally it was something like the color of my hair and we’re in this meeting room and suddenly I’m like, [looks down] and I look down and Wes is under the table of the meeting room. And he’s crawling around and I’m sort of thinking, Right, okay, I don’t quite know what this has got to do with the color of the hair, but cool. I’m loving it, Wes. Loving it. And so that was the level of enthusiasm we got.

Peter Macon: I could see him down there trying to, if my head is dragging in the dirt this way, the hair and the dirt will be dirty or over here. That’s the level of how he would just be so inside of it. When I first met him via Zoom and he told me the whole arc of the story, I was in tears, I was laughing. Because it was just me listening to him tell me the whole story the whole time. I’m like, Wow, we need to film that. That’s the movie. People were thinking, they’re going to come and see us when the posters and all that. No, it’s going to be Wes in front of a green screen, telling the story.

Freya Allan: No, in ADR he started doing the voice for one of the apes just for now they needed to put the line in and so he was doing it for now. And I was like, Well, there you have it.

Peter Macon: Yeah, you should use it.

Freya Allan: You should use it.

Peter Macon: You don’t need to hire actors. You just do it yourself.

Freya Allan: He could do the whole film himself.

Peter Macon: But just the joy. You would never know that he’s got all these different things going on. He’s a genius, I want to say. I mean Wonder Kin, you only need to go look at his, I think it’s a thesis film he did called Ruin. It was a short film, and it’s amazing.

You could totally see elements of this movie in that movie. He made that movie, I think in 2008, and he’s just so personable, you would never know. If you walk into the room, you wouldn’t know that was the director. He doesn’t carry himself around with this big sort of-

Freya Allan: TNo, he’s not got that ego thing.

Peter Macon: No, at all.

Freya Allan: And that’s someone who he doesn’t need to because he’s a genius. He doesn’t need to have that.

Peter Macon: He’s just a joy to work with an actor’s director, a visual, a VFX director, director’s director. Just really knowing more than anybody in the room. The storyboard presentation that he shared with us the beginning, this is that film. This is that film. Clearly.

So we were really fortunate to have someone at the helm who’s just super chill, but also ridiculously smart and knows exactly what he wants. Having to be in the performance capture suits or having to do scenes by yourself, you have to trust, you have to let go after a while. I can’t tell what it’s going to be because it’s not rendered. It’s not like we shot it and we can run it back and look at it.

We have to trust that he knows what it is in his brain and he knows he’s gotten it from you. Did you get what you need? Yeah, I got what I need. It was great. It was great. And walk away from it. And lo and behold, I’ve seen the movie and he knows what he’s doing.

About Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

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.

Source: Screen Rant Plus