New Planet Of The Apes Movie On The Way From Maze Runner Director

The Planet of the Apes film franchise is coming back. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fox has hired Maze Runner director Wes Ball to create a new Planet of the Apes movie.

It is unknown if this will be a continuation of the reboot series, the latest of which was 2017's War for the Planet of the Apes, or a different movie entirely.

The Planet of the Apes series is based on the novel of the same name by Pierre Boulle, and was first made into a popular movie in 1968 starring Charlton Heston. That film led to many sequels and extensions on the screen and TV. In 2001, Tim Burton rebooted the series again with Mark Wahlberg and Helena Bonham Carter in starring roles.

The franchise returned again in 2011 when Fox released Rise of the Planet of the Apes starring James Franco, along with Andy Serkis as the ape leader Caesar. That movie spawned two sequels, 2014's Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and 2017's War for the Planet of the Apes.

It sounds like it's still very early days for the new Planet of the Apes movies, so there are no details yet on a cast, writer, or release date.

This news about a new Planet of the Apes movie comes as little surprise. Earlier this year, Disney CEO Robert Iger said the Planet of the Apes series was a priority for the company following Disney's acquisition of Fox.

It makes sense that Disney would look to continue the Planet of the Apes series, as the newest reboot series that began in 2011 has grossed more than $1.6 billion at the global box office.