Interview

Director Special/Visual Effects

Director Wes Ball & Oscar-Nominated VFX Supervisor Erik Winquist on the Groundbreaking Visuals of “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes took the franchise to new heights of photorealism and immersive filmmaking. The groundbreaking series has pushed the envelope in motion capture and beyond, starting with 2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes and carrying on through three subsequent films. The latest film, Wes Ball‘s 2024 epic Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, was nominated for Best Visual Effects at the Academy Awards,

By Jack Giroux  |  February 12, 2025

Interview

Composer

Composer John Paesano on Scoring A Hero’s Journey in “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”

Editor’s note: This article contains light spoilers for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

“What’s interesting about this film, and it played into our favor, is you couldn’t score it like you could a normal film that’s been done the last ten years,” says composer John Paesano about director Wes Ball’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. “A lot of it wasn’t conceived by the time we started working on it because it was so visual effects heavy.”

What that meant for the composer was coming up with ideas that were emotionally connected to the characters rather than composing for pictures on a screen.

By Daron James  |  May 24, 2024
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” VFX Team on Bringing a New Generation of Primates to Life

The events in Wes Ball’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes take place 300 years after the death of Caesar (Andy Serkis), the focus of the previous Apes trilogy kickstarted by director Rupert Wyatt in 2011 and then led by director Matt Reeves for the final two films. Apes have now evolved into a fully talking species while humans tread backward. It would seem like a win for the apes,

By Daron James  |  May 20, 2024
Critics Hail Director Wes Ball’s Mighty “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”

Wes Ball didn’t have the easiest task when he signed on to make the fourth new Planet of the Apes film of the modern era. Rupert Wyatt kicked things off with Rise of the Planet of the Apes back in 2011, and then The Batman director Matt Reeves filmed the ferocious final two installments in the new trilogy, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes in 2014 and 2017,

By The Credits  |  May 9, 2024
A Ferocious Fight is Brewing in New “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” IMAX Trailer

20th Century Studios has just released a big, brawny new IMAX trailer for director Wes Ball’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, which boasts perhaps the franchise’s most photo-realistic warring apes yet. The new installment promises a ton of action, as the story is set hundreds of years after the events in Matt Reeves’ 2017 War for the Planet of the Apes. and finds apes reigning supreme, with humanity reduced to a feral existence on the margins.

By The Credits  |  April 1, 2024
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” Big Game Trailer Finds Rivals Vying for Supremacy

The Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers weren’t the only formidable foes battling it out last night. During the Super Bowl, 20th Century Studios revealed the official trailer for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, which is set hundreds of years after the events in Matt Reeves’ 2017 War for the Planet of the Apes. The apes reign supreme in this latest franchise installment, with humanity reduced to a feral existence on the margins.

By The Credits  |  February 12, 2024
First “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” Trailer Reveals Brilliant Apes, Feral Humans

The apes talk in the very first trailer for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. We know what you’re thinking—well, sure, they also spoke in the last Planet of the Apes movie, director Matt Reeves’ excellent 2017 trilogy capper War for the Planet of the Apes—but in director Wes Ball’s new film, they speak with a fluency and clarity that surpasses the humans they’ve displaced at the top of the food chain.

By The Credits  |  November 2, 2023
“Severance” Star Dichen Lachman Joins “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”

Dichen Lachman was perfectly cast in Severance as Ms. Casey, a fully severed (in the series’ parlance) employee of Lumon Industries who ran the nefarious company’s Wellness Sessions. Imposingly calm and deeply connected to Lumon’s chilling strategy for creating the most efficient and pliable workforce, to be brought to Ms. Casey’s office for a Wellness Session was one of the series’ most unsettling events. It would turn out, by the end of the excellent first season,

By The Credits  |  February 7, 2023
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” Starts Production in Australia

The Planet of the Apes franchise is getting a new installment. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has begun production at Disney Studios in Australia (formerly Fox Studios in Australia) in Sydney. This new installment will begin an all-new chapter in the epic saga that was last directed by The Batman helmer Matt Reeves in his excellent 2017 trilogy capper War for the Planet of the Apes. 

By The Credits  |  October 10, 2022