How to Watch 'Planet of the Apes' Movies in The Best Order

Planet of the Apes. Photo: Youtube

Planet of the Apes timeline: The chronological movie order

Follow our guide below, and you will watch the events in the Planet of the Apes movies as they happened. At the bottom, you'll find a spoiler-free, bulleted-list version of this guide, plus additional watch orders with absolutely no spoilers.

The first Planet of the Apes film released 52 years ago. It's been a huge influence on popular culture and even spawned eight sequels, a few of which manage to rival the original in terms of critical and box office success.

The release order keeps things simple and doesn’t have any confusion over where to watch the 2001 reboot. You’ll start with the planet already overrun by the apes and work through the original before jumping back to the prequel trilogy to see how it all began.

It is a good way to view it all, particularly as the 60s’ movies do look, as expected, dated now, plus it will leave you at the right place for when the next movie comes along that is expected to take place after the most recently released one.

Planet of the Apes (1968)

Where it all began back in the late 60s, Planet of the Apes remains a fantastic watch even 42 years after it first came out. Sure, the killer twist at the end is not so killer anymore with it being almost as ingrained in pop culture as Luke’s father reveal in Star Wars, but that doesn’t detract from how entertaining this is. A cinematic feat at the time, this is still a brilliant introduction to the ape filled world that was created and by far the best movie in the original run.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)

An astronaut named Brent (played by James Franciscus) is the only survivor of a ship sent to find the three astronauts from the first Planet of the Apes film. Soon after landing in the Forbidden Zone, Brent meets Nova, Taylor’s love interest from the first film. She is still wearing the astronauts' dog tags. She brings Brent to the ape city, where he meets Zira. She tells him about her time with Taylor.

Brent then goes back to the Forbidden Zone and finds an entrance to a New York City subway and a mutated race of humans worshipping a doomsday device. Ted Post took over directing duties for this film.

Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)

Photo: Pinterest

Directed by Don Taylor, this film is where our Apes timeline really begins to get weird. At the conclusion of Beneath the Planet of the Apes, we see the destruction of the planet by the Alpha and Omega doomsday device. However, before that happens, Zira and her husband Cornelius (played by Roddy McDowall) discover and begin to repair the original ship that brought Taylor to the Planet of the Apes.

The two apes use it to travel to 1973, or when the planet is destroyed. They become celebrities and are at the center of a government investigation into why Taylor’s ship suddenly reappeared with talking apes but no astronauts. Just as the government begins to suspect Zira hasn't been truthful, it’s revealed she’s pregnant. She and Cornelius must escape capture to save their child, Milo.

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)

The premise for this penultimate movie in the original timeline is not the best – despite having some moments. Cats and dogs have now been wiped out by a pandemic (which is perhaps the most depressing thing that could happen) and humans, in need of pets/slaves, turn to the apes to fill the role. Caesar and his ape friends do not take kindly to this and riot against the humans to try and build a new society. There are flashes of a decent film here, but it does continue the downward spiral that would only get worse with the fifth one.

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)

It's the year 1991, and Zira’s child is grown-up. He's portrayed by Roddy McDowall, who also starred as Cornelius in the previous film.

Anyway, Zira’s child, newly named Caesar, was raised in hiding by Armando (played by Ricardo Montalban), the circus owner she left him with in Escape from the Planet of the Apes. The film follows Caesar through a dark world in which cats and dogs have died off, and apes have become a common pet and are even an abused source of slave labor. Caesar is the only ape who can speak in this world. He becomes enslaved, and this leads to an uprising.

There is a theory that Caesar from 2011's Rise of the Planet of the Apes was the first intelligent ape, and that the Caesar in this film is one of his descendants. He'd be part of a new chain of events set off by his mother going back in time. While his new name, Caesar, could be a coincidence, it’s likely a nod to the original Caesar, who is a foundational part of the ape culture, which Zira would’ve shared with Armando or her son before she died.

Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)

The last installment in the original five-film saga, Battle for the Planet of the Apes takes place in the early 21st century, years after a nuclear war has destroyed civilization, as an ape leader rises to reestablish society —although social disputes and constant warfare keep life from returning to almost-normal.

The film's staunchest critics saw it as a boring cash grab, although there was some praise geared toward the directorial efforts of Oscar nominee J. Lee Thompson. While it did have a substantial box office taking, making just under $9 million on a budget of $1.7 million, it didn't generate enough revenue to guarantee a follow-up.

Planet of the Apes (2001)

Photo: We Make Movies On Weekends

While not quite as bad as its reputation may suggest, Tim Burton’s Mark Wahlberg starring reboot was certainly a misfire overall and it remains an oddity in the franchise that has no place in the timeline the others all reside in. There are moments that work here, but they are few and far between and to learn that two of the writers here also wrote Superman IV: The Quest for Peace comes as no surprise – at least it wasn’t that bad.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

After a ten year break from the franchise, it returned with style in the James Franco starring, Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Set while the Earth was as we know it and depicting the origin of the pandemic (sorry to use that word again) that wiped out most of humanity, this is a fantastic start for the new trilogy with Caesar’s rise to power and freedom expertly done. And this trilogy only gets better from here.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)

Jumping ahead in time from where we left off in Rise, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes builds on that first movie in the prequel trilogy and expands on it – delivering a film that is as compelling as it is action-packed. There are some good human characters here with the always dependable Jason Clark leading the pack, but the real meat of the story lies with the apes themselves. The rivalry and building tension between Caesar and Kobe is riveting stuff and it all builds to a stunning climax that sets up the third film perfectly.

War For the Planet of the Apes (2017)

The reboot series' third entry, 2017's War for the Planet of the Apes, follows the apes and humans as they begin what is set to become the definitive struggle for Earth.

The film made $490 million on a budget of just $150 million, so while it didn't match up to the trilogy's middle chapter, it was at least successful enough to justify its own existence; plus, critics loved it, with many recognizing it as one of the best films of the entire franchise.

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