Originally scheduled to open against Cars 2 on June 24th this summer, Fox pushed their prequel Rise of the Apes to a packed November 23rd weekend. Rethinking their decision they have now slotted it back to summer, for an August 5th release. It will open against The Change-Up, The Darkest Hour, and The Smurfs.
The blockbuster stars James Franco, Freida Pinto and Andy Serkis (in his motion capture performance suite). WETA is developing the photo-realistic apes using Avatar-like technology. Franco plays young scientist Will Rodman, “who makes a breakthrough while studying the development of intelligence in apes. Set in present day San Francisco, the film is a reality-based cautionary tale, a science fiction/science fact blend, where man’s own experiments with genetic engineering lead to the development of intelligence in apes and the onset of a war for supremacy.”
In sadder news, David Gordon Green‘s upcoming comedy The Sitter will hit theaters December 9th instead of the August 5th slot Apes has now taken. This will mark the second 2011 feature for Green, after Your Highness hits theaters next month. Starring Jonah Hill and Sam Rockwell, The Sitter follows “a college student on suspension who is coaxed into babysitting the kids next door, though he is fully unprepared for the wild night ahead of him.” It will hit theaters next to the Valentine’s Day sequel New Year’s Eve.
Which film are you more looking forward to?