Earlier this year, 20th Century Studios released the latest instalment in the long-running “Planet Of The Apes” franchise called “Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes”.

The film tells the story of a young ape, who goes on a journey that will lead him to question everything he’s been taught about the past and make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.

“Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes” went on to pull in almost $400 million at the box office and is currently the ninth highest-grossing movie of the year.   Showing that there is still life in this franchise, which originally began back in the 1960s and has spawned ten movies that collectively have brought in over $2.5 billion dollars at the box office.

In the final moments of the latest film, there was a cliffhanger ending, setting up the next adventure and it doesn’t look like we will have to wait too long to find out what happens next, as there’s been some good news for fans of the franchise, as it was confirmed in an interview with 20th Century Studios executive Steve Asbell that Disney is looking to continue to build out this established franchise with another film coming out in 2027.

Unfortunately, we don’t know too much more about the upcoming film, such as a release date, or if Wes Ball will be returning to direct the film, but hopefully, it will explore the idea that humans are going to mount a comeback now that they can communicate with one another globally following the reactivation of the satellite system.

Ever since Disney purchased 20th Century Fox in 2019, it has been looking to work out its strategy moving forward, with trying to balance established franchises and new films.  With the pandemic throwing a spanner in the works shortly after the purchase, it looks like we’re now starting to see a clearer picture of where 20th Century Studios is going, as Steve explained their plan of balancing originals and franchises:

Right now it’s looking like next year, half the slate. Job one was figuring out these franchise movies first and coming up with the right cadence of Avatar, Apes, Alien and Predator specifically. Getting those right was the first part, which we’ve done now. And so that idea is to be able to say, “Okay, we know when the Avatar movies are coming. We know now about Predator. There’ll be another Apes in ‘27, let’s just say.”So knowing where we can plan those franchises, it helps us look to see and ask what kinds of original movies in terms of genre do we want to test the marketplace with?

With the “Planet Of The Apes” franchise having such a long history, it’s a perfect fit for Disney to utilise across its other businesses, like theme parks, but it’s also great for its streaming services since having the previous films all available, allows people to explore this unique story.

Roger’s Take:  It’s great to hear that another “Planet Of The Apes” film is on the way, since I’ve enjoyed all the recent films, especially the newest one and am glad that we will get to see what happens next.  I don’t think “Planet Of The Apes” will ever become one of the biggest franchises for Disney, but over the decades, it’s built up a following that I think Disney knows it can add to and take advantage of.   Plus, now it has established a new time period to explore and developed the technology to continue the story, fans of the franchise have plenty to look forward to.

Would you like to see more “Planet Of The Apes” films?  Let me know on social media!

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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