Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is a 2014 American science fiction action film directed by Matt Reeves and written by Mark Bomback and the writing team of Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver. The sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), it is the second installment in the Planet of the Apes reboot film series and the eighth film overall. It stars Andy Serkis as Caesar, alongside Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Toby Kebbell and Kodi Smit-McPhee. The film takes place in 2026, 10 years after the events of Rise and follows a group of human survivors as they battle to stay alive in the wake of a deadly pandemic, while Caesar tries to maintain control over his expanding ape community which could lead to an all-out war between apes and humans.

A sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes was announced in 2011, with the return of both Serkis and Rupert Wyatt confirmed that November. Wyatt departed the film in September 2012, and Reeves was hired as his replacement that October. Casting took place between February and March 2013, with none of the additional original main cast members returning. Principal photography commenced that April and lasted until that July, with filming locations including Campbell River, Vancouver Island, and New Orleans. The apes were created using visual effects and motion capture as commissioned by Weta Digital, with the film featuring greater use of these components during action sequences and to create other animals.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes premiered on June 26, 2014, at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco and was theatrically released worldwide by 20th Century Fox on July 11. The film received positive reviews from critics and grossed over $710 million, making it the eighth-highest-grossing film of 2014 and the highest-grossing film in the franchise. It also received numerous awards and nominations, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Visual Effects. The sequel, War for the Planet of the Apes, was released in 2017.