It’s all monkey business at the box office.
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” the latest film in 20th Century Studios’ primate franchise, will rule over the box office this weekend. It’s already made $6.6 million in previews so far.
The new “Apes” movie is the fourth in the modern reboot franchise and the first since 2017’s “War for the Planet of the Apes.” “Kingdom” is projected to make between $50 million and $55 million in its opening weekend, which is roughly in line with the three previous entries.
The series’ second movie, 2014’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” holds the opening-weekend record with $72 million ($4.1 million in previews); followed by “War for the Planet of the Apes” with its $56.2 million opening ($5 million in previews); and finally the initial 2011 reboot “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” with a $54.8 million opening ($1.3 million in previews).
Director Wes Ball (“The Maze Runner” trilogy) helms “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” which is tipped to kick off a new trilogy of films. Set 300 years after “War for the Planet of the Apes,” the talking primates have now fully taken over the world, with groups of primitive humans living in the outskirts. A heroic chimp named Noa (played by Owen Teague) must venture outside his clan to save his family from the clutches of Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand), a despotic ruler searching for human weapons. Along the way, Noa comes across a young woman named Mae (“The Witcher” star Freya Allan) who may be crucial to humans’ survival.
