Fox Pushes PLANET OF THE APES Sequel Back to 2017, Slots GAMBIT for 2016

The next phase in the war between apes and mankind has been delayed a year. Fox shifted the sequel to Dawn of the Planet of the Planet of the Apes from July 2016 to July 2017.

No word why the studio made the change, but there haven't been any reports about production troubles or issues with director Matt Reeves, who has been attached to helm the film since before Dawn of the Planet of the Apes even hit theaters. Star Andy Serkis has a full schedule, with Star Wars and a Jungle Book adaption taking up his time right now — hopefully the delay is to get all the right pieces in place. A three-year gap between films in a franchise seems long now, but that wasn't always the case.

The Planet of the Apes sequel, which I'm still betting will be called War for the Planet of the Apes, will now open on July 14, 2017.

Fox also slotted its Gambit movie, which will star Channing Tatum, for Oct. 17, 2016. Rumor is that we'll actually see Tatum's Gambit in X-Men: Apocalypse earlier in 2016.