This Friday, “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” is primed to stage a hostile takeover of movie theaters across the country. And with deafening buzz and universal critical acclaim backing it up, “Dawn” could wind up being the most all-around successful movie of the summer.
Of course it only makes sense that the publisher of the “Planet of the Apes” comic books, Boom Studios, would take advantage of this "Apes" revival. And today, the publisher announced that in November, it will be putting out a comic book miniseries that bridges the gap between 2011’s “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and this summer’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.”
In a report over at Comic Book Resources, it is confirmed that the book will focus on humanity’s fall at the hands of the Simian Flu and the rise of Caesar’s ape army.
“Our ‘Planet of the Apes’ comics stand out to me as some of our best work,” Editor-in-Chief Matt Gagnon said in a statement. “This series marks the first time we’ve ventured into producing print comics based on the new films, and we can’t wait to explore this world. The new films are so good — we’re honored to add to the mythology.”
The yet-untitled series will be written by Michael Moreci, but no artist has been announced yet. Boom’s previous “Apes” comics have revolved around the universe of the original movie series from the ‘60s and ‘70s, so this marks a new beginning for the franchise on the page.
Before this new miniseries launches, Boom will publish a one-shot prequel to the film, titled “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes: Contagion.” This book will first be available at the San Diego Comic-Con later this month.
It can be argued that the “Apes” franchise has never been more popular than it is right now, and Boom is fortunate to have such a high-profile property under its umbrella. The company started producing these comics in 2011 just as buzz for “Rise” was beginning to swell, but even the publisher couldn’t have predicted that an “Apes” renaissance was about to take place.
While the characters have huge potential in movies, this universe is also ripe for the comic book page, so you can expect even more “Apes” comics to be announced in the future.
