‘Planet of the Apes’ Recap: What to Know Before ‘Kingdom’

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a new film in the long-running franchise, and it’s set hundreds of years after the previous films. But the events of that last Apes trilogy — Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and War for the Planet of the Apes — are hugely important to the backstory of Kingdom, which is about a new ape society that is threatened a new group of violent apes who study the history of their race. If you haven’t seen those earlier movies, you won’t fully understand the subtext and meaning of this new film.

And if you haven’t seen those movies, but you are interested in watching Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes in theaters, check out our latest video below, which recaps the modern Planet of the Apes trilogy in just 12 minutes. Learn about the rise of Caesar and his journey from the pet of a brilliant scientist to the leader of an entire civilization of hyper-intelligent apes.

Watch our full recap right here:

If you liked that video recapping the entire history of the previous Planet of the Apes trilogy, check out more of our videos below, including on one why the “worst” Planet of the Apes is actually really smart, all kinds of the secrets you never knew about the original Planet of the Apes, and even more trivia about Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.Plus, there’s tons more over at ScreenCrush’s YouTube channel. Be sure to subscribe to catch all our future episodes. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes premieres in theaters on May 10.