The Planet of The Apes Movies in Order: How to Watch Chronologically and By Release Date

The Planet of The Apes series of films has been one of the longest-running and most widely dynamic franchises as well. Over nearly 55 years, the series spanned five films in as many years, along with a short-lived television series, a 2001 remake, and an equally successful trilogy of movies helmed by director Matt Reeves (except the first, directed by Rupert Wyatt), with an acclaimed lead performance by Andy Serkis. Altogether, the films have made a combined worldwide gross of $2.2 billion.

With so many entries in the franchise and with a coming reboot from Disney it can be hard to know where to start and more importantly what order stacks up as best for first-time viewing. With two separate series in existence, there's many ways to view the films. However, we've found a way to simplify and streamline the viewing experience in chronological order. This viewing order works perfectly for newcomers to the franchise or those looking how to best view each installment in order of significance. Without further ado, here's our guide to watching the Planet of the Apes franchise in chronological order.

Planet of the Apes Movies in Chronological Order

Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
War For the Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes (1968)
Beneath the Planet of the Apes
Escape From the Planet of the Apes
Conquest of the Planet of the Apes
Battle For the Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes (2001)

Or, if you'd prefer, you can see how to watch the Planet of the Apes movies in order of release date.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

The first entry in the reboot trilogy, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is a prequel to the original franchise and chronicles the scientific experiments that led to the outbreak that causes the ape revolution. Reeves focuses on the relationship between James Franco's scientist and gifted experimental ape Caesar (the very underrated actor Andy Serkis, working with motion-capture), whose experience in captivity offers us a look into how the ape uprising began.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes works as a beginning entry as it lays the foundation for the events that shape the original franchise while also providing insight into the circumstances that shaped the original film (scientific experimentation on the apes leading to their heightened intelligence). The film also contains its fair share of Easter eggs and nods to the original which also establishes a nice sense of continuity. For those looking for a strong entry into the franchise and insight into the series' most pivotal events, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is a recommended gateway and a strong prequel that sets the mood and tone for the following entries in the franchise.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)

The sequel film to Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes chronicles the era where the apes have formed their own community and are attempting to maintain their own existence, but of course, humanity interferes. This period is only hinted at in the original series, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes offers insight into how the apes managed to take further control and establish their own leadership. The film is best viewed right after its predecessor, as the continuity between the two is extremely strong, and both continue expanding the lore of the series while offering character development and plot progression.

Viewing this prequel trilogy before the original series offers a strong perspective into the events that shaped them, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes works especially well as a second entry (which are often the weakest of trilogies). It's extremely exciting, the excellent special effects top the first, and it gives us a deeper look into the ape uprising only briefly mentioned in the older series.

War For the Planet of the Apes (2017)

The third and final entry in the prequel trilogy finally gives us a view at the ape revolution and the all-out war that led to them seizing control of Earth before fully evolving into the futuristic ape society seen in the original Planet of the Apes from 1968. Seeing the events of War For the Planet of the Apes before the original films gives an added weight to the circumstances and events in those entries. The movie puts both a resolution on Reeve's other film and Wyatt's first, and offers context into the larger events of the franchise at large.

Watching War For the Planet of the Apes before the classic series is the perfect segue and stacks up seamlessly in chronological fashion as well; it serves as not only an effective coda for one trilogy but a strong transition into another while offering plenty of plot and character development in the process. It's probably the most emotionally devastating movie of the franchise, and also the most critically acclaimed one, with a strong 94% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Planet of the Apes (1968)

The original entry that started it all, the 1968 classic is widely celebrated for its imaginative storytelling, thought-provoking concept, and haunting conclusion, which all make it one of the best sci-fi films before the '70s. Chronologically, viewing the original after Rupert Wyatt and Matt Reeve's trilogy offers a stronger context for the events depicted here and drives home the stakes instilled here even further. The film follows human astronauts, including Taylor (played by the iconic Charlton Heston) who crash land on what they believe to be an alien planet where apes have evolved into a tribalistic society and humans are nowhere to be found.

The original Planet of the Apes also works as a stand-alone film, but viewing it after the events of the prequel trilogy only enhances the intensity and depth present. While one could arguably start here as an entry point, it's recommended to view it after the reboots to witness the evolution leading to it in real time. Overall, despite what order it's viewed in, Planet of The Apes is still very much essential viewing, something famed critic Pauline Kael called "one of the most entertaining science-fiction fantasies ever to come out of Hollywood" in her book 5001 Nights at the Movies.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)

The sequel to the original Planet of the Apes, Beneath the Planet of the Apes ties into the events of the first and also introduces the concept of the underground resistance. The film picks up on the concluding elements of the original while also carving out its own section of the mythology as well, following another human astronaut searching for Taylor, who stumbled upon the conflicts which will lead to the ultiamte destruction of the planet.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes is best viewed directly after the original Planet of the Apes, as many of its plot points directly correlate, and it's beginning sequences pick up immediately where the first left off. As a sequel to the original film, Beneath the Planet of the Apes works as a direct companion piece and continuation of the original franchise. It ends rather hopelessly (attempting to top the original's ending) with the explosion of Earth and the line, "In one of the countless billions of galaxies in the universe lies a medium-sized star, and one of its satellites, a green and insignificant planet, is now dead."

Escape From the Planet of the Apes (1971)

The second sequel to the original film, Escape From the Planet of the Apes picks up right after the events of Beneath the Planet of the Apes, as established characters Zira, Cornelius, and Dr. Milo escape on the spaceship that Taylor arrived on. The explosion from the end of the preceding film sends the apes in a time warp back to 1974. The film is notable for being the first to deviate from the world of the films and focuses on the apes as they attempt to navigate high society to dramatic and tragic results.

The most acclaimed of the original films, Escape From the Planet of the Apes continues the sociopolitical commentary of the preceding films. The film works best after the first two films, as both a change of pace and a palette cleanser after the dystopian atmosphere of the preceding stories. The film also introduces the character of Caesar at the end, albeit a different version than the Matt Reeves films contain (though both are revolutionary ape leaders). This Caesar (originally named Milo, after Dr. Milo) is the son of Cornelius and Zira.

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)

The fourth entry in the original series takes the events of Escape From the Planet of the Apes and follows them up with a visceral and intense war film, the violent Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. The film takes place years after its predecessor, when human society uses ape slave labor, leading to a now fully-grown Caesar to begin his great revolutionary action against the human species and toward ape freedom. This entry builds off of the emotional and dramatic developments of the prior film and serves as a strong follow-up, while also providing plot points that would inspire the prequel series of films as well, despite some continuity and plot differences.

Battle For the Planet of the Apes (1973)

The fifth and final installment of the original franchise, Battle For the Planet of the Apes serves as the dramatic conclusion to the classic series. This installment is obviously best saved for last, as it both wraps up the earlier films and serves as an interesting counter to Reeves' own War of The Planet of The Apes. The film follows Caesar years after the nuclear war that led to the destruction of human society on Earth, and Caesar's attempts to maintain peace among apes. Released in 1973, the film (like the preceding Planet of the Apes films) is heavily focused on its anti-war message.

Despite the structural and tonal differences of the two series, it is fascinating to see the comparisons they share and what they bring to the table. Battle For the Planet of the Apes may not be the best-received entry, but it's still best viewed as a conclusion to the entire franchise and best saved for last. Overall this viewing order of some of the best sci-fi movies of all time largely stacks up with popular opinion and is recommended highly for those looking to explore the franchise.

The Planet of the Apes (2001)

The less said about director Tim Burton's movie version of the 1968 classic, the better. The Planet of the Apes remake essentially follows the same story beats as the original -- an astronaut, this time played (poorly) by Mark Wahlberg, crash lands on a future earth where civilized apes rule over subjugated humans. Although the special effects are obviously better than the often laughably bad special effects of the 1968 film, with its rubber suits, this 2001 version offers nothing to the mythology or storyline, and is edited in such a confusing way that the supposed 'twist' ending hardly makes sense. The film is an outlier in the Planet of the Apes chronology, and is completely superfluous to the preceding films.