‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ Adds Dichen Lachman!!

20th Century Studio’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has cast actor Dichen Lachman in an undisclosed role, The Hollywood Reporter has revealed. The upcoming feature is helmed by The Maze Runner franchise helmer Wes Ball from a screenplay written by Josh Friedman, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, and Patrick Aison. It will serve as a new chapter in the franchise and is expected to be set many years after the events of War For the Planet of the Apes.

Lachman will join the like of Freya Allan, Owen Teague, William H. Macy, and Kevin Durand, who have begun filming in Australia. Per the report, the upcoming movie is set in the aftermath of War for the Planet of the Apes as many apes societies have grown from when “the Moses-like Caesar brought his people to an oasis, while humans have been reduced to a feral-like existence. Some groups have never heard of Caesar, while others have contorted his teaching to build burgeoning empires.” In the new setting, one ape leader will begin to enslave other groups to find human technology, while another ape, who watched his clan be taken, embarks on a journey to find freedom. On this journey a young human woman becomes key to his quest, though she has plans of her own.

Planet of the Apes has been a long-running franchise, starting all the way back in 1968. It has spun off numerous reboots, remakes, TV series, and video games, and with each movie, the franchise has been commended for its storylines, character-driven plots as well as visual effects that include performance capture. The most recent installment in the franchise is the Andy Serkis starring trilogy, which began in 2011 with Rise of the Planet of the Apes. It was followed by the 2014 Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and concluded with War For the Planet of the Apes.

Image via Netflix

Lachman is best known for playing a wellness counselor in Severance, who has an unusual connection to the company worker played by Adam Scott. Her other credits include Jurassic World Dominion, Raya and the Last Dragon, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. among others. Further rounding off the cast of Kingdom of the Planet of Apes are Eka Darville, Travis Jeffery, Neil Sandilands, Sara Wiseman, Lydia Peckham, and Ras-Samuel Weld A’abzgi. The feature is produced by Joe Hartwick Jr., Jaffa, Silver, and Jason Reed.