Gary Oldman Joins The Damned Dirty Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes
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Gary Oldman could star in literally any movie in the world and I’d watch it. Texas Chainsaw Massacre in Space? Sure. Chinese Fingertrap: The Movie? Absolutely. A Vanilla Ice biopic? I’m already buying my IMAX tickets. Thankfully, he tends to only work on top-quality films, and he’s lined up yet another one for 2014.
Oldman is set to star in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Matt Reeves’ sequel to 2011’s enjoyable Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Coming Soon reports that he’ll be playing the leader of a human colony in a ape-filled world set 15 years after the first film. Part of the film will be focusing on a group of San Franciso scientists planning a rebellion against the damned dirty apes, while the other part will follow ape head honcho Caesar (Andy Serkis) as he struggles to keep control of his new civilization.
Considering he will presumably be playing opposite the intense Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty, Lawless), I hope Oldman puts on his shitkickers for this role, instead of the wonderfully regal but subdued version of authority he brought to James Gordon in Christopher Nolan’s Batman films.
Oldman’s presence is the shot of undeniable quality that this project needed. Matt Reeves’ Cloverfield and Let Me In were serviceable but not showstoppers, and screenwriter Mark Bomback’s resume is filled with predictable and clunky material like Unstoppable and the Total Recall remake.
The film is already scheduled for a May 24, 2014 release date, so maybe by that point my worries will be gone. Until then, I’ll just be sitting here worried about one of Oldman’s next features, the Robocop reboot.
