Peter Jackson Accidentally Saved One Of The Greatest Sci-Fi Franchises Of All Time

Peter Jackson may have inadvertently resuscitated a science fiction franchise, and it's because of the movie he didn't make. New Zealand's favored son, Peter Jackson, has had such a surprising and quietly indispensable career. Had he stopped after The Lord of the Rings, he'd still be looked at as one of our great filmmakers.

After LOTR, he went in a different direction, rebooting King Kong in 2005 into an epic, gorgeous, horror-tinged entry in the franchise. This was followed by a slew of disappointing movies in The Lovely Bones, The Hobbit films, and Mortal Engines, but even these five movies didn't tarnish his reputation. His work on They Shall Not Grow Old and The Beatles: Get Back reminded audiences why he is considered such a special talent.

It's not exactly the career you would expect just looking at his early years, which were filled with goofy slashers. Good films, but not necessarily Oscar-winning movies. Since his debut with Bad Taste in 1987, Jackson has never been afraid to pitch odd movies, which may explain his idea for Planet of the Apes.

Before Jackson began the effort to get The Lord of the Rings made, he and his partner and writing partner, Fran Walsh, were tapped to develop a new installment of the Planet of the Apes franchise. Their idea was something called "The Renaissance of the Planet of the Apes".

Ultimately, the film didn't end up happening, and Tim Burton took a swing at the story with 2001's Planet of the Apes, and Jackson and Walsh placed their efforts into another little franchise known as The Lord of the Rings. Their Apes movie not getting made was probably the best thing that could have happened to either franchise.

The Renaissance Of The Planet Of The Apes Sounds Like A Disaster Waiting To Happen

As Jackson describes it, "The Renaissance of the Planet of the Apes" would see "...Roddy McDowall... playing a sort of Leonardo da Vinci type." It would also have James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger attached. On one hand, that sounds like a '90s dream team; on the other hand, it sounds like a complete mess.

The Planet of the Apes franchise has its fair share of duds, and its fair share of absurd premises. Look no further than Beneath the Planet of the Apes, where a race of mutated humans use mind-control on their enemies. Still, just because Renaissance wouldn't stand out as a bad film doesn't mean it wouldn't still be a bad film too.

A Renaissance version of The Planet of the Apes would certainly be unique, but it also sounds a lot like the purposefully schlocky horror films of his early career. The Planet of the Apes films actually work much better when they take the subject matter seriously. The more out there the plot, the faster the stories fall apart.

Planet Of The Apes Received A Much Better Reboot In 2011, Reviving The Franchise

Who knows what direction The Planet of the Apes franchise would have taken if Jackson made his movie? Perhaps Tim Burton's 2001 reboot would have been pushed back years, which would mean the 2011 reboot might not have ever happened, and that would truly be a loss.

2011's Rise of the Planet of the Apes was a fantastic reboot of the franchise, and it spawned a new series of Planet of the Apes movies that, collectively, are better than any other series in the franchise. Jackson may not have made an Apes film, but his wise decision to avoid making one probably ended up buoying the movie universe.