Andy Serkis Signs Up for 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' Sequel

Courtesy of Weta

Andy Serkis will go ape again for a sequel for Twentieth Century Fox’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

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Apes, released in August, starred James Franco, Frieda Pinto and John Lithgow but also featured Serkis doing motion capture work as the super-intelligent chimp Caesar. The movie, proved to be a surprise hit, grossing $453 million worldwide. More importantly, critics had tongues wagging about Serkis’ performance, many saying it was worthy of an Oscar.

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Fox, moving forward on a sequel, exercised its option on Apes director Rupert Wyatt and has engaged original writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver to pen a new story.

But Fox has also inked a rich deal with Serkis for him to reprise his role Caesar. Serkis didn’t have a deal for a sequel and was able to flip that initial weakness and muscle his way into a large payout, something unprecedented for an actor known mostly for acting under layers of digital effects.