Universal Pictures just announced that Jurassic Park IV will open in 3D on June 13, 2014.  While many are quick to speculate that Steven Spielberg will direct, having just shelved the  sci-fi adaptation Robopocalypse for an indefinite period of time, no director is attached as of yet.  Spielberg will return as a producer, however.  Screenwriters Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, both of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, just turned in a fresh draft of the film earlier this week.  For those of you keeping score at home, that gives Universal less than 18 months to do all the pre-production, shooting and post-production visual effects (these are dinosaurs in 3D after all).  You can get a glimpse at what the original Jurassic Park looks like in 3D when it opens on April 5th, including a one-week IMAX run.  Hit the jump for more on Jurassic Park IV.

After reporting that director Rupert Wyatt was exiting Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, 20th Century Fox is now looking for a replacement.  As of this writing, it looks like Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Let Me In) is leading the pack.  Rounding out the short list of directors is J Blakeson (The Disappearance of Alice Creed), Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later) and Jeff Nichols (Mud).  Longer shots being reported are Pacific Rim director Guillermo del Toro (doubtful), Juan Antonio Bayona (The Impossible) and Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart).  Hit the jump to get this sorted out.

A fourth entry in the Jurassic Park franchise has been in various stages of development for quite some time now.  While the prospect of the film moving forward seemed to dwindle as time went on, there have been some major developments on the Jurassic Park 4 front as of late.  Steven Spielberg announced at last year’s Comic-Con that they had a story in mind and hoped to make the film “in two or three years.”  Late last month Rise of the Planet of the Apes screenwriters Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver were brought onboard to pen the script, and now we’ve got an update from Spielberg’s longtime producer Frank Marshall.

Steve got the chance to speak with Marshall in anticipation of the release of The Bourne Legacy, and the producer talked a bit about Jurassic Park 4, revealing that they plan on having it in theaters within two years.  Hit the jump for more.

Many of us are tentatively excited about Jurassic Park 4, but good execution is a dubious prospect.  The franchise has been gathering dust since 2001′s mediocre JP3, and Steven Spielberg confirmed he will not return to direct.  Ideally, Universal could find screenwriters who are experienced in rebooting a long-dormant, creature-based franchise with surprisingly successful results.  Well, we’re in luck!  Deadline reports the studio hired Rise of the Planet of the Apes writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver to pen the sequel.  The best part of Rise was how Jaffa and Silver treated the ape Caesar as a legitimate main character—with clear motivation and a captivating emotional journey, no less—when they arced out the story.  I am excited to see what they can do with the whip-smart velociraptor.

If you’re itching to see the world of Jurassic Park on screen again, you’ll get an early opportunity when the 3D conversion of Jurassic Park hits theaters on July 19, 2013.  Hit the jump for producer Kathleen Kennedy‘s comments about their goals for the script.

One of the most pleasant surprises of 2011 was Rise of the Planet of the Apes. While most expected it to be that forgettable monkey movie with James Franco, director Rupert Wyatt crafted one of the most enthralling films of the year. Fox has nabbed both Wyatt and actor Andy Serkis to return for a sequel, and all parties involved are hard at work on crafting the story. Screenwriters Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver recently confirmed that they’re working on the sequel script, and they spoke a bit about what they’ve got planned, including the possibility of having the Apes talk. Hit the jump to see what they had to say.

The film that surprised me the most this year was undoubtedly Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Going into the movie, I saw it as an unnecessary cash-in on the Planet of the Apes franchise that inexplicably starred James Franco. Much to my surprise, director Rupert Wyatt delivered one of the most emotional films of the year with a powerhouse performance by Andy Serkis in some of the best motion-capture these eyes have ever seen. With that, I’m happy to report that Fox is now officially moving forward with a sequel to the film as they’ve just closed a very hefty deal for Serkis to return and reprise his role as Caesar. Hit the jump for more, including who else is returning for the follow-up and news on Fox’s push for awards consideration for Serkis’ performance.

Fox has scheduled a June 24^th 2011 release date for the Planet of the Apes prequel, Rise of the Apes.  This new release date means the film will open against Pixar’s Cars 2.

Written by Amanda Silver & Rick Jaffa (The Relic, The Hand that Rocks the Cradle) and directed by Rupert Wyatt (The Escapist), Rise of the Apes will tell the story of how “man’s own experiments with genetic engineering lead to the development of intelligence in apes and the onset of a war for supremacy.”  THR also reports the heartbreaking news that WETA will be creating CGI apes instead of using costumed actors in make-up. I wish I could say that I was shocked.  More after the jump.

Good news Planet of the Apes fans, it appears a reboot of the classic film franchise may in fact be moving forward.  While the project was originally thought to be dead, reports indicate that Twentieth Century Fox is eager to get a new film underway.  Sources close to the project have said, “…the studio is now more determined than ever to make the film”

Initial speculation about the film not happening came when writer Scott Frank (Minority Report, Marley & Me) left the project.  Many thought this was the end of Planet of the Apes, but as it turns out the opposite may be true.  Fox has turned the project over to producer Peter Chernin and hired writer Jamie Moss (Street Kings) to revise Frank’s version.  Furthermore, scribes Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver (The Relic, The Hand that Rocks the Cradle), have returned to the fold to polish the dialogue.

Hit the jump to find out what direction the new Planet of the Apes might take.