Though Planet of the Apes 4 is a highly anticipated continuation of the franchise, the movie is missing a central character, ending a 54-year streak and creating a potential problem. The Planet of the Apes franchise started with the 1963 French sci-fi novel La Planète des Singes by Pierre Boulle and has expanded to include nine movies, two series, and multiple games. The movies tell the story of astronauts who return to Earth only to find it overrun by societies of super-intelligent apes.
In 2011, screenwriters Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver rebooted the franchise, starting a trilogy that would serve as an origin story. These movies focused on Caesar, the first ape born with heightened intelligence. After his mother gets killed, Caesar is taken in by Will Rodman. Over the next three movies, Caesar helps create more intelligent apes and a society where they can live peacefully. Unfortunately, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, the reboot’s fourth movie, will not include Caesar as a character, breaking the franchise streak and creating issues that the movie must overcome.
Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes Breaks The Franchise’s Caesar Streak
Starting in Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Caesar has been a staple in the Planet of the Apes franchise. He’s been a fan favorite in almost every movie because he epitomizes a fearless leader who truly wants to help his people. When the franchise rebooted in 2011, the movies became synonymous with the beloved ape due to the phenomenal writing and Andy Serkis’ performance. At the end of War for the Planet of the Apes, Caesar brought the apes to the oasis, their new home. Unfortunately, Caesar was shot by Preacher earlier in the movie.
In War for the Planet of the Apes’ ending, Maurice promises Caesar that his son will know about him, and then Caesar dies. Considering the way that the movie ends, it makes sense that Caesar won’t appear in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. However, this will also be the first Planet of the Apes movie without Caesar in 54 years. This is a huge hole for writers to fill in the upcoming movie, and they might not succeed.
Why Planet Of The Apes Dropping Caesar Is A Huge Risk
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes may struggle as a movie because it removes Caesar from the story. Caesar appears in six of the nine Planet of the Apes movies, starting when he’s born in Escape from the Planet of the Apes. He is integral to the plot in most of the films. Out of the three films that don’t have him—Planet of the Apes (1968), Beneath the Planet of the Apes, and Planet of the Apes (2001)—only one holds any merit.
The original Planet of the Apes has an 88% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, tying it for the second-highest score of the franchise. The success of this movie without Caesar can be chalked up to the fact that he wasn’t a character in the movies. It’s hard to miss something that doesn’t exist yet. However, the other two movies without Caesar hold a measly 38% and 27%. This is one of the big reasons that it’s a massive risk to drop Caesar in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
Additionally, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is taking an extra risk with its story because the reboot trilogy centers on Caesar. The Simian Flu and the war between species both occur in the trilogy; however, the core of the films always comes back to how the events impact Caesar’s character arc. Because they’ve taken a character-driven approach, the new movie will have to make the protagonist just as developed and compelling as Caesar, a difficult task. Caesar’s son Cornelius is expected to take up the mantle, but it will still be a challenge getting audiences to emotionally invest in him.
Kingdom Is Taking Planet Of The Apes Back To Its Roots
Based on everything known about the movie, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will take the franchise back to its roots. Caesar didn’t appear in the original movie, making the risk more calculated. Additionally, it will center on the character of Cornelius. Planet of the Apes 4 flips the original Caesar’s story, but it also brings back the main ape character of the original movie.
On top of the character parallels, this movie’s timeline is much closer to Planet of the Apes (1968). The humans have already become feral, and the highly intelligent apes have created their own society. Many of the ape empires have lost their memories of Caesar. Ultimately, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes should serve as a bridge between the reboot trilogy and the original movie.
