Planet of the Apes Complete Franchise Now Streaming on Hulu

May is officially here, which means Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is hitting theaters next week. The new film marks the 10th Planet of the Apes movie to be released since 1968. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is set to take place hundreds of years after the previous trilogy, and director Wes Ball has said you don’t need to see the other films first, but there are “lots of easter eggs for people that are fans from the ’68 version.” If you want to catch up on the franchise before you see the new installment in theaters, you’re in luck, because all nine previous films are now streaming on Hulu. 

The original Planet of the Apes films include Planet of the Apes, Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, and Battle for the Planet of the Apes. Those five films are now streaming on Hulu in addition to Tim Burton’s 2001 remake, The Planet of the Apes. The most recent trilogy is also available and includes Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and War for the Planet of the Apes. 

Are All of the Planet of the Apes Movies Canon?

While the most recent Apes trilogy ties directly into Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, the original five movies might be set in their own separate universe. In fact, Ball explained to members of the press during an edit bay visit that canon has always been “loose” in this franchise. 

“Yeah. I would consider them canon, but even in the last trilogy, even though they say Mars astronauts go missing in Rise, I don’t think Matt [Reeves] really thought about time-traveling astronauts in his two movies,” Ball explained. “So they’re always a little fuzzy with… I don’t think in this world that we’re creating there’s going to be a time machine that sends apes back to the… We’re in a different age kind of thing for that, but we still try to… That’s what I love about these movies. They still feel connected somehow, even if we do drop a few ideas that don’t really hold up anymore. But Beneath, fans of that movie might see some things in this, that might remind them … You know what I mean? … We took all those movies in a stew and found the pieces that may hopefully feel related to … Canon’s always been a little loose in these movies, I think.” 

Directed by Wes Ball, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes stars Owen Teague (IT), Freya Allan (The Witcher), Kevin Durand (Locke & Key), Peter Macon (Shameless), and William H. Macy (Fargo). The movie opens in theaters on May 10th.