The latest Planet of the Apes movie, the reboot Planet of the Apes series, which began in 2011 with Rise of the Planet of the Apes. This fourth movie stands out because, rather than following the franchise's original protagonist, Caesar, the movie fast forwards to a completely new generation.

The reboot Planet of the Apes franchise is unique from its predecessors. While the original 1970s Planet of the Apes movies centered on humans in the far future who find a planet run by apes, the reboot series focuses on the present day and how apes became powerful in a world run by humans. Arguably, the reboot movies could be considered prequels to the original franchise. As a result, audiences have been waiting for the reboot films to reach the timeline of the original movies, when Earth is completely run by apes. Unfortunately, this may not happen soon.

The Original Planet Of The Apes Was Set In 3978 (Kingdom Was Around The 25th Century)

The Planet Of The Apes Timeline Gap Explained

It will be exciting to see the reboot Planet of the Apes movies catch up to the original franchise, yet it seems unlikely that this will happen any time soon. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes place in the future, but not far enough for the two film series to connect just yet. For reference, the synopsis of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes places it 300 years after War for the Planet of the Apes, which took place around 2028. Therefore, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes was approximately set in 2328.

Believe it or not, this is far from the time period of the original Planet of the Apes. 1968's Planet of the Apes took place in 3978. This puts a 1,650-year gap between Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and Planet of the Apes. While the latest installment in the franchise definitely felt closer to the reality presented in Planet of the Apes, the timelines are still far away from each other. In fact, the characters introduced in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will be long dead by Planet of the Apes, and Caesar entirely forgotten.

Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes’ World Is Still Not Quite What The Astronauts Found

How Kingdom Sets Up Planet Of The Apes

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes provides audiences with a new version of Earth, but it isn't quite what George Taylor found in the original movie. In Planet of the Apes, Taylor and his colleagues find a desolate wasteland when they first arrive on Earth. Although they do find a lake surrounded by lush nature, the majority of the film takes place in a desert-like setting. In Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, there is an overwhelming amount of greenery and nature.

Furthermore, the apes have yet to develop a population as solid as Planet of the Apes' Ape City. In fact, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has a particular focus on how the apes have colonized the land over the past 300 years. Based on Noa's village, it is clear that there are certain ape dwellings, but they are not necessarily united. Clans like Proximus Caesar's harm other ape groups for power. Thus, the apes in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes are far from forming any type of Ape City.

Of course, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes does set up the beginnings of what eventually appears in Planet of the Apes. Proximus Caesar is a tyrant who keeps apes under his thumb. Despite this, he has a rather large population of apes living with him. This type of civilization could eventually lead to something like Ape City. On top of that, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has already given a sneak peek at how the apes ride on horseback throughout the land, intending to do harm to others.

Even With A Time Skip, It Would Still Be Too Soon For The Astronauts To Crash On Earth

Predicting Planet Of The Apes' Timeline

After Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, audiences may be looking forward to getting even closer to the timeline of Planet of the Apes, but it probably won't happen soon. According to Wes Ball, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the first in a new trilogy within the reboot series, so two more movies are definitely on the way, but there's no guarantee that they will reach the year 3978. If Kingdom's sequel was to jump to 3978, that would completely abandon Noa and his peers. Thus, the next movie will have to move more slowly.

It would make sense that the next movies would not make another leap forward in time, but instead, would show how Noa becomes a notable figure among the apes.

It seems likely that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and its sequels will focus heavily on Noa, just as the first movies centered on Caesar. It would make sense that the next movies would not make another leap forward in time, but instead, would show how Noa becomes a notable figure among the apes. The Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes also hints at an conflict between the apes and the humans. It definitely would not make sense to skip over that in favor of connecting the film series' timelines.

Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes’ Sequels Don’t Need To Follow The Original Chronology

The Reboot Planet Of The Apes Can Stand On Its Own

In any case, the reboot Planet of the Apes movies do not necessarily have to align perfectly with the original films. It has been clear from the very beginning that the reboot movies are telling a different story than the initial films. These new movies, from Rise to Kingdom, have offered audiences amazing new characters and some serious moral qualms to sort through. Over the years, they have definitely proved that they can stand on their own, separate from the original series. Therefore, connecting the timelines doesn't even need to happen.

On the other hand, the reboot movies could introduce human astronauts whenever they want. 3978 may be simply too far away, so it wouldn't be the end of the world for the reboot series to bring in George Taylor or a similar character earlier on. However, based on how the franchise is going, it seems like the movies aren't too concerned with reaching this huge moment. There are other characters, both human and ape, that are more interesting to explore in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and beyond rather than the characters audiences already know.