Planet of the Apes Director Matt Reeves Reveals Donkey Kong Easter Egg

By Cade Onder

The Batman and War for the Planet of the Apes director Matt Reeves has revealed that there's a Donkey Kong Easter egg in the recent rebooted Planet of the Apes series. The Planet of the Apes series is one of the most iconic film franchises out there, really taking the sci-fi genre into a new and unique direction. That only continued when the series was rebooted in the early 2010s and served as a prequel to the events that transpired in the original films, showing how apes conquered Earth. Despite being a pretty absurd concept, the trilogy garnered praise for how serious it took itself and solidified Matt Reeves as a visionary blockbuster director. However, just because they were serious doesn't mean there weren't some cheeky references.

In War for the Planet of the Apes, there's a group of apes called "donkeys". The donkeys were against Caesar and eventually sided with the humans, even going as far to become enslaved by the military force led by Woody Harrelson's character. They'd not only serve as soldiers, but also be painted with the word "donkey" on them and be used to haul gear around for the humans. Although it's clear that the name was given to them because they're treated like donkeys, Matt Reeves confirmed on Twitter that he also gave them the name as a nod to video game character Donkey Kong. Of course, Donkey Kong is a big ape within the Mario universe and has spun off into his own series that has found immense success. 

Donkey Kong will also be featured prominently in the Super Mario Bros. Movie next year, but he won't look as hardened and realistic as the apes in Reeves' two films. It's a tad unfortunate we never got a more direct reference to Donkey Kong, such as a donkey throwing a barrel at someone, only for them to hop right over it. Perhaps we'll get something a bit more obvious in the next set of Planet of the Apes movies.

What did you think of Matt Reeves' two Planet of the Apes film? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.

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