Fur is flying over reports that Disney might be planning a reboot of “Planet of the Apes.”
According to DiscussingFilm, 20th Century Studios, which Disney acquired last year, is expected to mount a full reboot of the beloved movies, rather than continuing to add prequels or sequels to the CGI-heavy, three-film series that was released from 2011 to 2017.
The site reports that production designer Daniel Dorrance has joined the project alongside director Wes Ball, the two worked together on two of the three “Maze Runner” movies.
Devotes of the three most recent “Apes” films — which featured the likes of James Franco, Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson and Gary Oldman — have whipped up a frenzy over the proposed new versions.
“THESE MOVIES ARE SOME OF THE BEST PREQUELS EVER MADE AND DISNEY WANTS TO REBOOT??? HOW ABOUT NO, YOU NASTY RATS,” sounded off one fan on Twitter, adding in a Charlton Heston-worthy fashion, “KEEP YOUR DISGUSTING PAWS OFF OF PLANET OF THE APES.”
One commenter suggested simply continuing the flow of the 2017 installment, “War for the Planet of the Apes,” asking, “Why not expand [on] the great universe that the trilogy has set up?” Another suggested Hollywood should: “Let the franchise breathe for at least 5-10 years, then reboot. It’s too much too soon.”
“The last three reboot films were amazing. Don’t reboot this franchise again!” wrote another. “Especially not this soon! War for the Planet of the Apes was the perfect ending and it was released almost three years ago!”
Matt Reeves, director of the upcoming “The Batman” reboot starring Robert Pattinson, directed 2017’s “War for the Planet of the Apes” and 2014’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.” Rupert Wyatt, who produced the 2016 Fox series “The Exorcist” — based on the 1973 film and William Peter Blatty’s 1971 novel — directed the current trilogy’s 2011 kickoff, “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.”
The franchise is based on Pierre Boulle’s 1963 French novel “La Planète des Singes” and depicts a tables-turned world in which apes rule over humans; it was first adapted for Hollywood in a 1968 movie starring Heston and Roddy McDowall — spawning four spinoffs. The expansive franchise also included a reviled 2001 version, directed by Tim Burton, which garnered an audience score of only 27% on Rotten Tomatoes and starred Mark Wahlberg, Helena Bonham Carter and Michael Clarke Duncan.