Director Matt Reeves couldn’t turn down the studio for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
When approached about taking the reins of the Apes franchise after Rupert Wyatt’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Reeves was originally hesitant, saying that directing Dawn of the Planet of the Apes wasn’t for him.
Speaking to Variety, the director said, “I was initially excited, and then I saw the [studio’s] outline and I said, this isn’t really the story I would want to tell, I don’t think this is for me.
“To my shock they said, ‘no, no, wait, just tell us the story you want to do.’ I said, ‘I don’t see what the point of that is, because you’ll probably try then to get me to do some version of 20% what I want and 80% what you want, and I’ll have to do a big showdown at Candlestick Park or something…’ ”
The producers, however, were insistent and said that as long as he could stick to their proposed schedule, they wanted him and his vision for the movie, offering him a deal.
“And I said, ‘that makes it really hard, because now you’re not giving me the reason I needed to say no. Which means I have to say yes.’ ”
Now of course, Reeves is preparing for the release of the third film in the Apes trilogy, War for the Planet of the Apes, which is being received very well by critics – sitting at an 81 on metacritic [read our reviews here and here].
One can say that both Reeves and the studio made the right calls with regards to the licence the director was given to unleash his vision for the franchise.
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In War for the Planet of the Apes, the third chapter of the critically acclaimed blockbuster franchise, Caesar and his apes are forced into a deadly conflict with an army of humans led by a ruthless Colonel. After the apes suffer unimaginable losses, Caesar wrestles with his darker instincts and begins his own mythic quest to avenge his kind. As the journey finally brings them face to face, Caesar and the Colonel are pitted against each other in an epic battle that will determine the fate of both their species and the future of the planet.
War for the Planet of the Apes is directed by Matt Reeves (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) and features a cast that includes Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Steve Zahn, Judy Greer, Karin Konoval, Terry Notary, Michael Adamthwaite, Gabriel Chavarria, Max Lloyd-Jones, Sara Canning, Amiah Miller, Aleks Paunovic and Chad Rook.
Originally published July 13, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
