Freya Allan, who plays Mae in ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’, has shed light on the importance of her character in the upcoming Apes movie. The Witcher fame will play the central human character, Mae, who forges an unexpected but strong emotional connection with Noa, the film’s ape protagonist.
In a recent interview with ScreenRant, Allan discussed Mae’s relationship with Owen Teague’s Noa in ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’.
“When we were playing that relationship, it really felt like Mae was watching him and just kind of terrified of how much of herself she could see in him, how much relatability there was, and how much of a mirror was being held up between the two of them. It’s easier for her to not see that in order to do the mission she wants to do, but she’s challenged there.”
The Kingdom’s final trailer shows Proximus Caesar killing Noa’s father and destroying everything he loves. Witnessing the brutal murder of his father by Proximus Caesar would be a deeply traumatic experience for Noa. This creates a strong bond of shared suffering between him and Mae, who are both targeted by the antagonist. We also see Noa protecting Mae from Proximus Caesar’s attack. This act of selflessness demonstrates Noa’s willingness to protect Mae, likely solidifying her trust and gratitude towards him.
Since its inception in 2011, the Planet of the Apes reboot franchise has excelled in almost every department, except one. It has failed to give us a memorable human character. The core human-ape relationship in ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ was between Caesar (Andy Serkis) and Will (James Franco). While the film was a brilliant start to the reboot franchise, it would have worked a lot better if it had any other actor except Franco, whose performance looked wooden and stale.
On the other hand, ‘Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)’ had plenty of underdeveloped human characters. Despite being a significant improvement over its 2011 predecessor, Dawn appeared to be relying way too heavily on the Caesar vs Koba storyline. If we omit this storyline from the film, then there is nothing left in it. As for War for the Planet of the Apes, Woody Harrelson’s take on ‘Colonel’ was one-dimensional. It lacked the depth and complexity present in other characters like Caesar.
Which is why Freya Allan’s Mae will play a crucial role in ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’. Her character could emerge as the franchise’ best character. Let’s see what happens! The film will come out in theatres on May 10, 2024. Stay tuned for more updates.
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