@SWLinPHX said:

...does that mean in just twenty years time or so when the astronauts landed from the past the apes could have advanced so much that they are now walking upright and talking in perfect English as in the original film??

We do not know. It is not written yet. Truth is that these movies serve as both a reboot and prequels to the originals. But in fact, it is not truly prequels as they differ quite a bit on some obvious facts. Like when Taylor and crew went into space etc… so one answer is simply that we do not know their future yet…. Or another answer (which I prefer) see them as "prequels with liberties" and so demands some thought. And I will attempt this:

Nova is in some sense the first domesticated human among Apes. And since we know she is infected by the virus, we must assume her intelligence will demise and so her role will increasingly become more and more pet-like to the Apes. In other words, she is the first pet and so perhaps her name becomes the typical pet name? Like we humans have many typical dog names, the Apes likely will have too… In other words, there will be many other “Nova” to come. We just met the first one.

Caesar and Cornelius names go hand in hand. In the originals, Caesar is the son of Cornelius for example and not the other way around. And we know from human history of kingdoms, names often are repeated as well. In the Kingdom of Denmark for example, kings are named either Frederik or Christian (dad and son), interchanged and again and again. Perhaps this is so for the rulers of the Apes? Caesar had a son named Cornelius, and Cornelius gets a son named Caesar etc etc…

These two explanations allow for the originals to still happen long in to the future…

Good explanation! I actually thought of the re-use of names explanation too, as part of a long lineage. I was just curious if the writers intended us to think that this being the last of the trilogy was supposed to be leaving off right where the original series began.

@SWLinPHX said:

Good explanation! I actually thought of the re-use of names explanation too, as part of a long lineage. I was just curious if the writers intended us to think that this being the last of the trilogy was supposed to be leaving off right where the original series began.

I am curious too :) To me it was a quite nice end to the trilogy now; leaving the Apes there to build their society and the humans to slowly (or quickly) decay because of the virus... what more needs to be told? Nothing imo, I am perfectly happy with having the "next" being the original series... to my knowledge this was also the aim for the storytellers.

That being said, this one did quite well at the box office and so this often provoke further chapters, weather it is a good idea or not. IF they would continue, I think it will be a lost case to try and repeat the original. The original is great for ts time and because of the magnificent twist - which cannot be redone in any meaningful way (just ask Burton, he surely tried). And so I would rather that they would try and stick to the book. I do not know it well, but it differs substantially I believe from the Original back in 1968 and it could be an interesting tangent to continue by…. But as I said, I hope they will just leave it be.

The "prequels" to the original films are Escape, Conquest & Battle. Only they aren't really as they change the timeline... But maybe they could serve as prequels to Beneath?

The reboots are explicitly not - and cannot be - connected. The Icarus mission mentioned in Rise was a Mars mission, absolutely nothing to do with POTA's stated mission...

@The Midi-chlorian Count said:

The "prequels" to the original films are Escape, Conquest & Battle. Only they aren't really as they change the timeline... But maybe they could serve as prequels to Beneath?

The reboots are explicitly not - and cannot be - connected. The Icarus mission mentioned in Rise was a Mars mission, absolutely nothing to do with POTA's stated mission...

of course they are connected. However for obvious reasons not directly or verbatim. Or rather with a high degree of liberties. For one, Taylor smokes a cigar on board his spaceship :) ... almost the most unrealistic thing in the whole saga. Imo the new ones are both prequels and reboots from a certain point of view... and so it begs the question; what is next? Nothing or something?

Though Escape and the subsequent chapters cannot be seen as prequels to the original in any way, because they are a direct and specific consequence of what happened in Beneath, and Beneath is a direct and specific consequence of the Original first.... Plus after Escape’s change on the timeline the humans do not become unintelligent like in the first... at least not within the timeframe of those movies. Escape’s effect in the timeline is indeed somewhat similar in the end but still not the same.. But good point though.