What The Next 5 Films Will Be About

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the fourth entry in the modern Planet of the Apes movies, and with news that there are plans for a nine-movie saga, here are what the next five Planet of the Apes movies could be about. The modern Planet of the Apes saga is less than halfway over, with the introduction of Noa marking a new chapter in the epic Planet of the Apes modern series. Since the series is set to consist of nine movies, there are still five Planet of the Apes films left, and here’s what they could be about.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is finally here, with the highly anticipated continuation of the modern Planet of the Apes movie series now released. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes‘ timeline is set 300 years after the death of Caesar, leaping into the future for an all-new story. As it turns out, the modern Planet of the Apes series is set to span nine movies, although very few details have been revealed about where the franchise will go (via Movieweb). So, here are the best guesses regarding what each Planet of the Apes film could be about.

Predicting Planet Of The Apes 5’s Story: Explore Humanity’s Rise With Technology

Building Off Of Kingdom’s Ending

Planet of the Apes 5 is the film that will immediately follow the story of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, picking up where that film left off. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes followed Noa as he befriended a human named Mae and attempted to take down a tribe of apes who had twisted the words of Caesar, with their leader wanting to get his hands on human technology. However, the end of the film reveals that Mae stole something from the vault and brought it to an underground society of hiding humans, setting up the sequel.

Planet of the Apes 5 will most likely see these underground humans use their newfound means of communication to work together with other groups of survivors. Unlike most of the humans in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, these humans aren’t feral and seem to be relatively technologically advanced. The fifth film could follow these humans as they attempt to further improve their technology and rise up, preparing to fight back against the fairly primitive ape kingdoms. Thus, this is the start of an exciting ape and human conflict once again.

Predicting Planet Of The Apes 6’s Story: Another War Between Apes & Humans

Continuing The Original Trilogy’s Trend

Planet of the Apes 6 would be the conclusion of the second trilogy in the modern Planet of the Apes series, meaning that it would need to wrap up the story and themes of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. If Planet of the Apes 5 shows humans regaining their standing, Planet of the Apes 6 will most likely show the culmination of this advancement, furthering the conflict between apes and humans. Armed with their newly-created technology, the humans could attempt to take back the Planet of the Apes for themselves.

Throughout this second great war between apes and humans, Noa and Mae could be going against both sides, arguing for a world of co-existence, concluding Noa’s character arc from Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. Focusing on a great war between humans and apes would be perfect for the conclusion to this trilogy, continuing a pattern established in War for the Planet of the Apes. This may be the turning point in the modern Planet of the Apes series, setting up a drastic change for the franchise.

Predicting Planet Of The Apes 7’s Story: A Remake Of The Original Movie

Finally Bringing Back George Taylor

Since there are still three movies after Planet of the Apes 6, the humans obviously can’t win, meaning that they most likely lost. Thus, the apes could enslave the remaining humans and use the leftover human technology to create an even more advanced society. Much like the gap between the third and fourth films, Planet of the Apes 7 could feature a massive time jump, focusing on another new ape protagonist. For this next story to work, it is possible that the Planet of the Apes timeline could jump another 1700 years, around 2000 years since the fall of humanity.

2000 years after the fall of civilization means that Planet of the Apes 7 would be the perfect time to finally remake the original movie. Planet of the Apes 7 could finally see George Taylor and the crew of the Icarus crash land on Earth, retelling the story of the original 1968 film. This time jump would allow ape society to evolve to the point that it does in the original film, creating an even harsher environment for George Taylor.

Predicting Planet Of The Apes 8’s Story: The Introduction Of Time Travel

The Great Ape Space Race

After introducing George Taylor in Planet of the Apes 7, it only makes sense for Planet of the Apes 8 to explore an essential element of the franchise: time travel. George Taylor and his crew travel to the planet of the apes by flying their ship into a time warp in space, meaning that whether Taylor lives or dies, the apes will know about the possibility of time travel. The apes and whatever living humans remain could become excited by this possibility, setting up an intense space race.

The humans could know that the only way to save Earth is by getting to the time warp, going back in time, and stopping Caesar’s uprising. Meanwhile, the apes could catch onto this plan and try and stop the humans, leading to an even more advanced battle for the planet of the apes. Thus, the final film could be set up by the humans and the apes reaching the warp.

Predicting Planet Of The Apes 9’s Story: A Return To The Time Of Caesar

A Remake Of Rise

Planet of the Apes 9 could pick up right where the previous film left off, with the human survivors and some of the apes arriving back in the early 2000s, to the time of Caesar. The film could follow these characters as they make their way through the events of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, with the humans trying to stop the ape uprising, and the future apes attempting to intervene. In a way, this would be a remake of Escape from the Planet of the Apes.

Bringing the series back to its roots in the final film would be the perfect way to conclude the modern Planet of the Apes saga. However, this is all speculation, with it being possible that these attempts to build off the story set-ups of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes fall flat. However, it is fun to predict where Planet of the Apes will be decades in the future.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Set several years after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the next installment in the Apes saga. Ape clans have taken up residence in the oasis that Caesar sought to colonize, but humans have reverted to their animalistic nature in their absence. Now battling between enslavement and freedom, outliers in the Ape clans will take sides in a newly burgeoning society.

Director

Wes Ball

Release Date

May 10, 2024

Studio(s)

20th Century , Chernin Entertainment , Oddball Entertainment , Shinbone Productions

Distributor(s)

20th Century

Writers

Patrick Aison , Josh Friedman , Rick Jaffa , Amanda Silver

Cast

Kevin Durand , Freya Allan , Peter Macon , Owen Teague , Eka Darville , Sara Wiseman , Neil Sandilands

Expand