Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes Director Responds To Theory Connecting Caesar & New Main Character

Summary

• Director Wes Ball clarifies new protagonist Noa’s connection to Caesar, 300 years post-Caesar’s death in
  War for the Planet of the Apes
  .
• Caesar’s legacy impacts several new characters in the movie, especially Noa.
• Ball describes a mythic connection to Caesar through destiny, birthmarks, and similarities woven throughout the film’s frames.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes director Wes Ball clarifies how the new protagonist, Noa, is connected to Caesar. The upcoming film takes place 300 years after Caesar’s death in War for the Planet of the Apes, yet Caesar’s legacy continues to endure and impact the ongoing evolution of apes and humans. This will help to bridge the gap between the prequel trilogy focused on Caesar with the original 1968 Planet of the Apes starring Charlton Heston.

In an interview with Screen Rant, Ball explains how Caesar’s legacy affects Noa, the wise orangutan Raka, and the new villain, Proximus Caesar in this spring’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. None of them are direct descendants of Caesar, not even Proximus Caesar, who adopted the name as a sign of status, importance, and righteousness to aid in his rise to power. Despite not being Caesar’s direct descendants and being born long after him, Caesar still has a significant influence on the new characters’ varying beliefs and actions. Read Ball’s comments below:

Raka, I think, even if he’s not quite right all the time, he really understands what Caesar stood for. What ape should aspire to become. Proximus has wielded Caesar’s legacy as a weapon to steer other apes in a particular direction. I think it’s an interesting thing for Noa as this kind of blank slate who doesn’t know who Caesar is, to interpret both these ideas of Caesar, who he was, and how he carries Caesar’s torch forward into the future. It’ll be fun to play with. There’s even this little thing where, spiritually, there’s a lot of connections to Caesar through Noa. He’s a chimpanzee, destiny gave him the same scar right here [on his chest]. As you see in the movie, that same birthmark that Caesar had which some people caught in the trailer.
“He’s Caesar!” He’s not. There’s destiny at foot here.
There’s something mythic about it all. So even the very first frame of the movie and the last frame of the movie is very similar. So we tried to play with that kind of stuff.

Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes Has Found The Perfect Way To Expand The Franchise

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has seemingly found the perfect balance between new elements and honoring what the franchise has already achieved. The significant time jump is a true test of how Caesar changed the world and how he is remembered, with Raka genuinely understanding and embodying Caesar’s philosophies, Proximus Caesar weaponizing them, and Noa forging his own path based on what he learns from Proximus Caesar and Raka. Caesar became a mythical figure, with Noa potentially being the next ape destined to reshape the world, and who will eventually gain his own mythical status.

The connections to Caesar are more spiritual than literal, with other spiritual connections present as well. Just as the orangutan Maurice was a wise friend and advisor of Caesar’s in the previous films, Raka appears to be fulfilling a similar role and attitude in his relationship with Noa. As for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes‘ villain, Proximus Caesar is twisting Caesar’s words and his legacy for his own gain, which the antagonist, Koba, tried to do in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes after believing he killed Caesar.

This approach ensures that the primary focus will be on the new characters and their stories, while making it clear that Caesar’s actions in the previous films still matter. Viewers who are familiar with Caesar’s journey will be rewarded, but those who are less familiar or who are engaged with the franchise for the first time via Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes still have an entry point that is accessible and understandable.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
releases in theaters on May 10.