Concept art for the upcoming Matt Reeves-directed War For the Planet of the Apes has identified the mute little girl seen riding alongside Caesar and his band of fellow simians.
First spotted in the threequel’s sombre teaser trailer, we knew that the young Amiah Miller was attached to play the mystery character, who joins a troupe of travelling apes to locate Woody Harrelson’s war-mongering Colonel. There’s more to this reticent youngster than meets the eye, however, as Entertainment Weekly has today confirmed that Miller is on board as Nova, a character played by Linda Harrison across the original Planet of the Apes films. Back then, Harrison starred opposite the great Charlton Heston, and the inclusion of Nova in War For the Planet of the Apes is perhaps one of the strongest ties between Fox’s prequel series and the originals.
Indeed, the creators behind Fox’s modern franchise have always maintained that the 1968 movie is part of the canon, and while it makes for quite the complicated timeline, welcoming Nova to the fray is still a neat piece of fan service.
But Amiah Miller’s mute girl is much more than just a living, breathing Easter egg; here, director Matt Reeves sheds some light on her interaction with Caesar while chatting to EW: “The battle is not just between the humans and the apes, but in Caesar’s soul. The girl is his pull back to his empathy and — for lack of a better word — his human side.”
Picking up two years after the events of Dawn, War For the Planet of the Apes marches into theatres on July 14.