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20th Century Studios’ fantasy action film “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” has begun production in Sydney, New South Wales, at the iconic Fox Studios Australia, which have been newly renamed Disney Studios Australia, according to a report by Variety.
The franchise film is pitched as a new chapter in the “Planet of the Apes” saga, picking up many years after the conclusion of 2017’s “War for the Planet of the Apes.”
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Under the direction of Wes Ball (“The Maze Runner” trilogy) it will star Owen Teague (“It”), Freya Allan (“The Witcher”), Peter Macon (“The Orville”), Eka Darville (“Jessica Jones”) and Kevin Durand (“The Strain”).
The screenplay is by Josh Friedman (“War of the Worlds”), Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver (“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”), and Patrick Aison (“Prey”).
Joe Hartwick Jr. (“The Maze Runner” trilogy), Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver and Jason Reed (“Mulan”) are the film’s producers. Peter Chernin and Jenno Topping are the executive producers.
The production will receive some A$17 million ($10.8 million) in support from the Australian government and funding through Screen NSW’s Made In NSW fund. Federal Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke, said that the film will provide more than 400 local jobs and inject more than A$128 million ($81.5 million) into the Australian economy.
To date the franchise, based on a novel by Pierre Boulle, has amassed more than $1.7 billion in worldwide box office, beginning with the release by then 20th Century Fox of “Planet of the Apes” in 1968. That was followed by four theatrical sequels and two television series. A remake, “Planet of the Apes,” directed by Tim Burton, was released in 2001. A 2011 reboot, “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” was followed by two sequels, 2014’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” and 2017’s “War for the Planet of the Apes.”
