Watching the Planet of the Apes franchise can feel confusing because it spans over five decades, includes a complete remake, and features a modern prequel trilogy alongside recent sequels. If you want to dive into Caesar's saga or experience the original 1968 classic and its sequels, picking the right viewing order matters. You can watch the films either in release order to appreciate how cinematic effects and storytelling evolved, or in chronological order to follow the internal timeline of the ape uprising and human decline from start to finish.
This guide breaks down every single film in the franchise across both viewing paths, details essential plot context, and highlights how the timelines connect. Whether you're a first-time viewer or revisiting the wasteland, here's how to navigate the entire ape-run world.
Release Order vs. Chronological Order
Choosing how to watch depends entirely on your viewing style. Release order lets you experience the franchise the way audiences did from 1968 onward, preserving major plot twists and surprise connections. Chronological order reorganizes the films by the internal history of the universe, starting with the modern prequel era before jumping to the classic timeline or vice versa.
The Release Order Path
Watching by release date is ideal for first-time viewers because it prevents major spoilers regarding the overarching sci-fi lore.
- Planet of the Apes (1968)
- Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)
- Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
- Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)
- Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)
- Planet of the Apes (2001) - Standalone Tim Burton remake
- Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
- Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)
- War for the Planet of the Apes (2017)
- Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024)
The Chronological Order Path
If you prefer a straight historical timeline of the sci-fi universe—specifically following the rise of intelligent apes and the fall of humanity—you'll want to tackle the modern reboot series first, followed by the classic continuity.
The Modern Reboot and Sequel Era
The modern era revitalized the franchise using performance-capture technology, turning a cult classic property into a modern blockbuster masterpiece. This storyline begins in the near future and traces how an engineered virus wipes out most of humanity while granting advanced intelligence to apes.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
Directed by Rupert Wyatt, this film serves as a contemporary origin story. Scientist Will Rodman (James Franco) tests a neurological drug called ALZ-112 on chimpanzees to cure Alzheimer's. The treatment creates a hyper-intelligent chimp named Caesar (Andy Serkis). When corporate greed and human cruelty fracture Caesar's trust in humanity, he orchestrates a mass uprising, freeing captive apes and leading them into the Muir Woods.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)
Set a decade after the events of Rise, a devastating retrovirus known as the Simian Flu has wiped out the vast majority of human civilization. Caesar has established a thriving ape colony in the forests outside San Francisco. When a small group of human survivors stumbles into ape territory looking for a hydroelectric dam to restore power, tensions flare. Directed by Matt Reeves, this film explores the tragic impossibility of peace when fear and extremists on both sides drive the factions to war.
War for the Planet of the Apes (2017)
Also directed by Matt Reeves, this chapter concludes Caesar's emotional arc. Following brutal military skirmishes with a rogue paramilitary faction led by the fanatical Colonel McCullough (Woody Harrelson), Caesar's family suffers a devastating loss. Driven by a mix of vengeance and a desire to secure a safe haven for his people, Caesar leads his surviving followers across a frozen wasteland to find a new home.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024)
Set several generations after Caesar's death, this installment explores a world where Caesar's teachings have been distorted. Different ape clans have emerged, and a tyrannical ape leader named Proximus Caesar twists historical teachings to enslave other clans and harness remnants of human technology. A young chimpanzee named Noa embarks on a journey alongside a feral human named Mae, questioning freedom, legacy, and survival.
The Classic Era (1968–1973)
The original five-film run from 20th Century Fox remains a monumental achievement in satirical and provocative science fiction. It reflects the social anxieties of the late 1960s and early 1970s, including Cold War fears, racial tension, and environmental collapse.
Planet of the Apes (1968)
Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner and starring Charlton Heston as astronaut George Taylor, this foundational film establishes the core premise. Taylor's spacecraft experiences relativistic time dilation, crash-landing on an unknown planet in the year 3978. Here, mute humans are hunted and enslaved by an advanced society of talking apes—divided into chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans. The film's iconic twist ending remains one of the most famous reveals in cinema history.
Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)
Directed by Ted Post, this direct sequel follows another astronaut, Brent (James Franciscus), who crashes on the planet searching for Taylor. He discovers a subterranean city inhabited by telepathic human mutants who worship a divine doomsday weapon—an unexploded alpha-omega nuclear bomb. The film delivers a bleak exploration of religious fanaticism and mutually assured destruction.
Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
Don Taylor directs this clever narrative pivot. Three intelligent chimpanzees—Cornelius, Zira, and Dr. Milo—repair Taylor's downed spacecraft and travel backward through time, arriving in 1973 Los Angeles. Initially treated as scientific celebrities, they soon realize that human fear of their superior intellect will lead to the eventual enslavement of their species, prompting a desperate fight for survival.
Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)
Set in a dystopian 1991 where a space-borne virus has killed all cats and dogs, humans have replaced household pets with apes, eventually turning them into enslaved laborers. Caesar (played by Roddy McDowall, who played Cornelius in previous films) has grown up in secret. Radicalized by the brutal murder of his surrogate father, Caesar begins organizing a violent slave revolt against human masters.
Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)
The final installment of the original timeline attempts to bridge the gap between ape and human coexistence. Directed by J. Lee Thompson, Caesar tries to build a peaceful society where apes and humans live as equals. However, aggressive gorilla factions led by General Aldo and remnants of subterranean mutants threaten to destroy the fragile peace, setting up a circular timeline.
The 2001 Standalone Remake
Planet of the Apes (2001)
Directed by Tim Burton, this reimagining follows astronaut Leo Davidson (Mark Wahlberg) as he enters an electromagnetic storm in 2029 and crashes on the planet Ashlar in the year 5021. Featuring elaborate makeup effects by Rick Baker rather than CGI, the film tells an independent story that reinterprets Pierre Boulle's original novel Pierre Boulle French Novelist with a distinct visual style and a shocking twist ending of its own.
Common Mistakes When Watching the Franchise
- Skipping the original sequels: Many viewers watch only the 1968 classic and assume the rest of the original series is low-quality filler. In reality, films like Escape and Conquest offer sharp political satire that deepens the mythology.
- Confusing the reboot continuity: Viewers sometimes mix up the 2001 Tim Burton film with the 2011 Rise of the Planet of the Apes. The 2001 film is a standalone remake and does not connect to the modern prequel trilogy.
- Watching the modern trilogy out of order: The modern ape saga follows a strict continuous narrative centering on Caesar. Starting with War or Dawn ruins the emotional impact of Caesar's evolution from a lab subject into an iconic leader.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to watch the 1968 original before watching the 2011 reboot?
No, the 2011 film Rise of the Planet of the Apes is a complete reboot with an entirely separate continuity. You can start the modern series without any prior knowledge of the classic films.
Where does Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes fit in the timeline?
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is set roughly 300 years after the death of Caesar (War for the Planet of the Apes). It continues the modern reboot timeline, focusing on a new generation of apes who have built distinct clans far removed from Caesar's direct influence.
Are the television shows essential viewing?
There are two television spin-offs: Planet of the Apes (1974 live-action series) and Return to the Planet of the Apes (1975 animated series). Neither is considered canon to the main movie timelines and both are optional viewing for dedicated franchise completionists.
What order should I watch if I want the biggest plot twists preserved?
Stick strictly to the release order. Watching the 1968 classic first protects its legendary twist, and moving through the original sequels before jumping to the modern prequels ensures you experience the technological and narrative evolution of the series naturally.
