
Rupert Wyatt has moved into pole position on 20th Century Fox’s Planet of the Apes prequel. No start date, but Wyatt’s come aboard to develop to direct. Script’s by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver. Wyatt last directed The Escapist.

Rupert Wyatt has moved into pole position on 20th Century Fox’s Planet of the Apes prequel. No start date, but Wyatt’s come aboard to develop to direct. Script’s by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver. Wyatt last directed The Escapist.
This sounds like a horrible idea. I just can’t picture what a prequel would be about.
Pole position?
Yep. It’s a racing term referring to the most favored starting position. It’s entered the lexicon as an idiom referring to a favored position or position of advantage in general. But the spelling is “pole” as Mike corrected it since it refers to the pole on the inside at the starting line. And there is probably more than you wanted to know about that bit of trivia. LOL.
Prequel? What the hell does that mean? Can it be a prequel to the making of the recent Planet of the Apes movie? Can we see why Mark Walberg got the part? Was it because he could yell his lines? Can we see the 8 hour make up sessions of all those talented actors where they are made unrecognizable? Will we get the moment when all those actors realize what a horrible mistake they made?
THAT I will pay to see.
It’s essentially a remake of CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, telling the story of how apes came to rule over man. Word is the Scott Frank script was loaded with social commentry- just like the original. Of course, Fox is …”uncomfortable” about that, so goodbye Scott Frank. Damn shame that Fox didn’t learn from the Burton Fiasco- POTA without social commentary ISN’T POTA at all.
I read it when it was called GENESIS: APES and it was fucking phenomenal, one of my favorites. Here’s my logline for those wondering what it’s about:
A chimp changed by an experiment that makes him smart is raised by humans but ends up being imprisoned after attacking a man. The chimp leads a rebellion against his human captors and figures out a way to unleash a virus that kills all humans.
This was the 14 September 07 draft — from what I’ve heard, it’s changed appreciably, but I’d bet the concept has remained. You think it’s gonna be SPARTACUS meets EVERYWHICH WAY BUT LOOSE. It’s way more than that. I’ve never been a huge Jaffa/Silver fan, but there are two moments in that script that sent chills down my spine. The first was the moment when Caesar, the lead chimp, stands up on his hind legs and speaks for the first time. It’s shocking. The second moment is the final shot, which I won’t spoil.
Planet of the Apes reboot, again?
Prequel.. to the original series or the Tim Burton reboot?? Sequel to the original movie of the original series or an extension of the series…? I didn’t bother with the reboot so maybe there’s something worth prequeling about … but all in all.. up there with the multiple Wizard of Oz movies and the Gilligans Island reboot. Is there no creative thought in Hwood? (although I guess I and others ask this same comment again and again so apparently there’s no there’s no original thought in complaints either!)
Can someone please tell Mike F that he no longer works at Variety, and those kitschy headlines are no longer necessary and totally obnoxious? You’re a great reporter but jeez, dude, lay off the cheese.
yeah I get pretty angry about puns too, I think Variety invented them
At least the headline doesn’t say that Fox is ‘going ape’ for a “POTA” prequel…
What the headline should read is that Fox is “going bananas” over a “POTA” prequel…
Whatever happened to Scott Frank’s Caesar? I knew he was off the project, but is Fox going back to an earlier (?) Silver/Jaffa script?
P.S. There is absolutely no way Conquest could adequately be remade today by Fox (the best in the series, in my opinion). It is way too (obviously) political for any studio to gamble on.
P.P.S. I’m still mad at Tim Burton for screwing up its chances at a proper re-imagining.
The story actually sounds good. This has the potential to kickstart a new Planet of the Apes franchise, even if the plan is to lead the prequel into the 1968 original.
There is room out there for another apes movie. Something new. The POTA brand has, and always will, have a ‘racial’ and political element to it. Are we there today? Do we need that? People like monkeys. Why not an apes movie where the next step in ‘simian’ evolution captures a new audience? Wait, no, I got it. In 3D!