USA Today have unveiled the first images from Matt Reeves’ latest film, War for the Planet of the Apes, which picks up two years following the events of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Andy Serkis has talked about the journey his character Caesar has been on in the that time.

“Caesar, who has had a love for human beings, is now tested beyond measure. The losses of the apes on his side drive him to a really dark place. He doesn’t know anymore where his loyalties lie. He’s in a very deeply conflicted period of his life.”

The events of DOTPOTA were brutal indeed for the simian army. The traitorous Koba (played with supreme menace by Toby Kebbell) tore a hole through the fragile group of Apes, and though nothing was settled between the humans and the apes in the last film actions on both sides pushed them planet to war.

Above you’ll see Andy Serkis as Caesar, Rocket (Terry Notary) and Luca (Michael Adamthwaite) getting ready for a face off against this man…

Here’s the first look at Woody Harrelson as the Colonel, described as ‘a military man determined to bring down his simian enemies’. The director explained to USA Today that he is on a mission

“to create a world where things can be gentle again. But the journey he takes you on is chilling…There’s also bizarrely a kind of respect [between the Colonel and Caesar] and understanding from both sides…It’s understanding the condition of the other person, what they’re having to suffer through and what they’re trying to protect.”

The full trailer for the third film in the new trilogy will be online later today.

War for the Planet of the Apes Movie Synopsis