Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Had The Biggest Ever Opening in the Franchise

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is very good, and it kind of needed to be — after the death of Caesar in the last film, all eyes were on the future of the franchise to see if it could pull it off. As it turns out, not only has it pulled it off, it’s also become a record-breaker for the franchise.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, the fourth film in the rebooted Planet of the Apes franchise, has had a stellar opening weekend, bringing in $22.2 million domestically on its opening day, and a total of $129 million worldwide in its opening weekend. As noted by DiscussingFilm, this makes it the best opening weekend for any film in the franchise.

It’s not particularly surprising that the film has taken off. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes got great reviews, although its overall aggregated score was a little bit lower than previous films in the franchise. Still, as we mentioned in our own Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes review, the film is bold and charming, and a great step forward for a franchise that very easily could have fallen on its face.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes place roughly 300 years after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes, which ended in the devastating death of Caesar, the leader of the ape rebellion who led the apes to a safe, peaceful world. Kingdom picks up with a role reversal, with humans having turned feral and apes living largely in peace — although some, over time, have twisted Caesar’s teachings.

If you’re interested in the film and heading out to see it this week, make sure you check out our guide for everything you need to know about Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes first, which includes details on whether or not there’s a post credits scene, if you need to watch the other films first, and just about everything else.

Related: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Blu-Ray Includes Mind-Blowing Extra