Category: Entertainment | Title: Planet of Apes Movies in Order to Watch: Complete Viewing Guide | Tag: Film Series | Meta Description: The correct order to watch all Planet of the Apes movies, including reboots and originals, for the best story experience...
Planet of the Apes Movie Chronology
The franchise spans two distinct timelines: the original 1968 series and the modern reboot starting in 2011. The original series includes five films produced by 20th Century Fox, beginning with the 1968 classic directed by Franklin J. Schaffner and concluding with Battle for the Planet of the Apes in 1973. The reboot series, developed by 20th Century Studios, consists of three films directed by Rupert Wyatt and Matt Reeves. The reboot timeline is widely considered the best entry point for new viewers because it features advanced motion capture performances by Andy Serkis as Caesar, the central ape character. The original films are best understood as a classic sci-fi anthology rather than a single continuous narrative.
For a chronological story experience, start with the 2011 reboot film Rise of the Planet of the Apes, then watch 2014's Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and finish with 2017's War for the Planet of the Apes. This trilogy forms a complete arc focused on Caesar's leadership and the evolution of ape society. The original 1968 Planet of the Apes, starring Charlton Heston, can be watched as a standalone masterpiece of 1960s science fiction. The subsequent original sequels, Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971), Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972), and Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973), expand the lore backward and forward in time. Streaming platforms like Disney+ currently host the reboot trilogy, while the original films are available on various digital rental services.
Modern Reboot Trilogy Details
The modern reboot series was produced by Chernin Entertainment and distributed by 20th Century Studios. The first film, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, was released in 2011 and grossed over 480 million dollars worldwide. It introduced Caesar, a chimpanzee raised by a scientist played by James Franco, whose intellectual growth leads to ape liberation. The second film, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014), takes place ten years after a simian flu has devastated humanity and depicts fragile peace between apes and surviving humans in San Francisco. The third and final installment, War for the Planet of the Apes (2017), follows Caesar's quest for revenge against a ruthless colonel played by Woody Harrelson while leading his colony to a new homeland.
The reboot trilogy is notable for its use of performance capture technology, with Weta Digital creating photorealistic ape characters. Andy Serkis provided the physical and vocal performance for Caesar across all three films, a process that set new industry standards for digital character acting. The series received strong critical and commercial reception, with Dawn of the Planet of the Apes holding a 90 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on aggregated reviews. The combined global box office for the trilogy exceeds 1.4 billion dollars, making it one of the highest-grossing reboot series. The narrative concludes definitively with War for the Planet of the Apes, providing closure for the Caesar storyline.
Original Series Context and Legacy
The original Planet of the Apes film (1968) was produced by Arthur P. Jacobs and based on the 1963 novel by Pierre Boulle. The story follows astronaut George Taylor, played by Charlton Heston, who crash-lands on a planet ruled by intelligent apes and discovers the ruins of human civilization. The twist ending, revealing the ruined Statue of Liberty, became one of the most iconic moments in cinema history. The film was a major commercial success, earning over 32 million dollars at the box office against a modest budget, and spawned four sequels throughout the 19