Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty) has signed to star in the follow up to Rupert Wyatt's box office hit Rise of the Planet of the Apes. We reported a little while ago that James Franco (Oz the Great and the Powerful) had not been contacted to return for this sequel so it could be safe to assume that Clarke will be taking the lead role.
While we don't have an official synopsis as it's being kept under lock and key, The Hollywood Reporter is saying that the movie is "set 15 years after the events of 2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes... one focus is on the human scientists who are struggling to survive alone in San Francisco. Another aspect of the story is the struggle of intelligent ape Caesar, played by a returning Andy Serkis (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey), to maintain dominance over his kingdom."
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is planning a spring shoot so we can expect to be hearing more details about plot and casting in the upcoming weeks.
The sequel has been written by Scott Z. Burns (Contagion) and is based off a script from Rise of the Planet of Apes writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver. It's set to hit theatres on May 23rd 2014.