<Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $489.5 million </Td> </Tr> <P> War for the Planet of the Apes is a 2017 American science fiction film directed by Matt Reeves and written by Mark Bomback and Reeves . A sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014), it is the third installment in the Planet of the Apes reboot series . The film stars Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson and Steve Zahn, and follows a confrontation between the apes, led by Caesar, and the humans for control of Earth . Like its predecessor, its premise shares several similarities to the fifth film in the original series, Battle for the Planet of the Apes, but it is not a direct remake . </P> <P> Principal photography began on October 14, 2015, in Vancouver . War for the Planet of the Apes premiered in New York City on July 10, 2017, and was theatrically released in the United States on July 14, 2017, by 20th Century Fox . The film has grossed over $490 million and received critical praise, with many reviewers highlighting the acting (particularly Serkis), visual effects, story, musical score and direction . </P> <P> Two years after the U.S. military was called to fight off an increasingly intelligent and dangerous tribe of apes, starting a devastating war between the two species, the apes' clan, led by the chimpanzee Caesar, are attacked in the woods by a rogue paramilitary faction known as Alpha - Omega, led by a mysterious Colonel . Alpha - Omega has in its service apes (called "donkeys") that had previously followed Koba, a maniacal, human - hating bonobo who led a failed coup against Caesar and started the war after leading a vengeful attack against human survivors in San Francisco . </P>

When did war for the plant of the apes come out