“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” director Wes Ball peeled back the curtain on Wētā FX ‘s Oscar-worthy VFX in “Inside the Lens: The Raw Cut,” a full-length, split-screen comparison between the final cut of the film and a version with unfinished VFX. Featuring optional commentary by Ball, editor Dan Zimmerman, and production VFX supervisor Erik Winquist, “The Raw Cut” appears on the supplemental Blu-ray in the 4K Ultra HD set available now available 27. This VFX deep dive is a first for the “Apes” franchise (which has yet to win the coveted VFX Oscar).
Ball (“The Maze Runner”) followed Matt Reeves (“The Batman”) with a post-Caesar (Andy Serkis) reboot, some 300 years later when apes rule the planet. “Kingdom” revolves around chimp teenager Noa (Owen Teague), forced to rescue his Eagle Clan (named for bonding with the majestic bird) from the evil clutches of militant chimp ruler Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand). Along the way, Noa befriends wise orangutan Raka (Peter Macon), who teaches him about Lawgiver Caesar, and Mae (Freya Allen), a mysterious, intelligent human with a secret agenda.
Boasting chattier apes and more action set pieces (33 minutes of the film are entirely digital — a franchise first), Wētā split its crew into four teams overseen by Winquis). They moved through digitally enhanced and fully digital environments, interacting a lot with Allen’s Mae. Wētā designed and built 11 new high-resolution digital apes and shot .