The Planet of the Apes franchise is one of the weirdest, yet most insightful stories about the nature of hate. The films present a criticism of the "us versus them" mentality against humans and the apes, the latter of whom have risen from their primitive state to become an intelligent and dominant species. The road to getting to a kingdom of apes wasn't clean though. Each film of the reboot Apes trilogy has its fair share of fight scenes that suffer heavy losses and weigh a toll on its victors or losers. The reboot trilogy began in 2011 and ended in 2017, consisting of three films: Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes.

The newest film, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, acts as a sequel to the trilogy following Caesar's legacy in the future. There's a good reason why there's such a long time frame between the last movie and the current entry that's releasing in 2024. Every reboot film pits the humans against the apes in some form or fashion. Even when humans suffer from their own extinction due to a fictional illness called the Simian Flu, they can't help but strap on a gun and start lighting up their enemies. There comes a point where Planet of the Apes accomplished all it can by stretching out the humans vs. apes message. Despite the repetitive elements in each fight scene, the creatives behind the magic found new and creative ways to pump adrenaline into each sequence.

6 The Attack on Ape Waterfall Was Hardly a Worthy Fight

The Alpha-Omega Army was the big-bad enemy in War for the Planet of the Apes, led by Colonel J. Wesley McCullough. The Colonel believed they were humanity's last hope to rise again as the dominant species, but their terrorist actions prompted other humans to rise against them. One of their efforts to accomplish this was to assassinate Caesar, the leader of the Ape colony, in his waterfall home. By mistake, the Colonel kills Caesar's son Blue Eyes and his wife Cornelia, leaving Cornelius alive.

The scene itself isn't all that exciting as a fight scene. Most of the climactic moments happen off-screen as Caesar attempts to figure out what's going on, and it isn't until he finds the deaths of his family that the scene takes a turn. The scene is also incredibly dark, suffering from the pitiful Game of Thrones mistake of ruining a perfectly good sequence just because of bad lighting.

5 The Apes Get the Upper Hand in the Battle of Muir Woods Park

The Battle of Muir Woods Park is the opening scene of War for the Planet of the Apes, which is incredibly fitting for its title. The Alpha-Omega Army attempts to infiltrate Caesar's colony but are ambushed by the apes themselves. The battle itself is a standard fight scene that doesn't stand out from the rest of the action-packed conflicts in the trilogy, but it is an appropriate scene to open the final film.

It's the culmination of everything Caesar has worked for, but also gives him false hope that both humans and apes can live in harmony if he shows an act of mercy. The battle reveals that Alpha-Omega has ape soldiers themselves who believe they are willing participants. These apes are cruelly nicknamed "Donkeys" by the other soldiers, which goes to show how brainwashed these apes are. After Caesar wins the battle, it turns out to be an ape that escapes and betrays him.

4 The Battle on the Golden Gate Bridge Was the Apes' First Rebellion

Caesar's fight for freedom comes to a head in the third act in Rise of the Planet of the Apes when he starts bonding with other apes in the San Bruno Primate Shelter. Although he understands he was raised with love and care by Will Rodman, he sees that others were raised in an abusive environment. The Battle on the Golden Gate Bridge wasn't an act of war for Caesar, but an attempt to find his fellow apes a home where they can live without human intervention.

Unfortunately, the San Francisco Police Department didn't see it that way. They gather all of their officers on the Golden Gate Bridge to stop the ape army, forcing Caesar to use strength against them. While the police may have had guns, the apes were able to show true ingenuity, using their primal instincts to win. Not only is the scene a thrilling sequence that takes place on an iconic American landmark, but it also shows the milestones that special effects reached in 2011. The apes look very realistic without dipping into the uncanny valley, and the effects only get better from there.

3 The Humans Suffer Near Extinction From the Battle of the Border

The final fight in the trilogy takes place in War for the Planet of the Apes after Maurice and Bad Ape orchestrate an escape plan for their fellow apes. They're on a time crunch as the Northern Military is approaching soon, which would make every ape collateral damage in the human war. While the majority of the apes made it out in time, Caesar couldn't leave without avenging his wife and son.

The fight is a visual representation of humanity's worst traits, and the apes' best traits. The Northern Military overpower the Alpha-Omega Army in numbers and firepower, but are instantly killed by an avalanche. The apes, on the other hand, were able to survive by climbing trees. As the battle commences, there's also a poignant scene in Caesar's development when he refuses to kill the now-mute Colonel, not letting vengeance overcome him like Koba. As Caesar dies from a gunshot wound, he reflects on the lives he's saved and the movement he started for the apes, finally finding peace to rest.

2 Caesar's Escape From Captivity Started a Decades-Long War

While Caesar's escape from imprisonment in Rise of the Planet of the Apes was the least action-packed out of all the major fight scenes in the reboot trilogy, it was the most powerful catalyst for the apes to become the dominant species on Earth. After being held captive by John Landon and his son, Dodge, in an abusive primate shelter for a long period of time, Caesar decides enough is enough. Dodge tasers Caesar multiple times and insults him with an iconic villainous line from the original Planet of the Apes movie, "Get your stinkin' paws off me, you damn dirty ape!" In a moment of startling truth, Caesar reveals he can speak by yelling, "No!"

The one word from Caesar shocked both the humans and apes, leading to an all-out escape sequence. Caesar inadvertently kills Dodge by electrocuting him, but stops the apes from killing the other caretaker, displaying his dominance and kindhearted nature. The entire scene leads to the San Francisco fallout, but not before breaking other apes out of Gen-Sys, including Caesar's future enemy Koba.

1 The Battle of San Francisco Saw Caesar vs. Koba

The Battle of San Francisco is the greatest fight scene in Planet of the Apes for one reason: It shows that apes can be just as bad as humans. Up to the final act of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Caesar blindly believed that apes are wiser and kinder than humans because they aren't taught to hate like humans are. But with this mindset, he also neglects the pain of his friend Koba, who suffered a great deal by being an experiment for humans. Koba's abandonment of Caesar's philosophy to fight against the humans is hollow and hypocritical because he uses a man-made gun that sets the humans apart from apes.

In some way, Koba became a human himself who succumbs to self-destruction, making Dawn of the Planet of the Apes one of the best movies in the Apes franchise. Koba reminds Caesar of his mantra, "Ape shall never kill ape," but Caesar refutes this, saying Koba isn't an ape. Caesar's partnership with people at the San Francisco human colony is entirely representative of who he is as a leader. He's not fighting for power like Koba is, he's fighting for peace.

The Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy is available to stream on Hulu and Max. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes releases in theaters on May 10, 2024.