Severance star joins Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

(Image credit: Apple TV Plus)

Dichen Lachman is the latest to join Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, a new installment in the long-running franchise from Maze Runner helmer Wes Ball. Lachman, who plays the illusive Ms. Casey on Apple TV's Severance, has joined the cast in an undisclosed role.

Per The Hollywood Reporter, the film takes place many years after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes and sees a world where ape societies have increased while humans have been reduced to a feral-like existence: "One ape leader begins to enslave other groups to find human technology, while another ape, who watched his clan be taken, embarks on a journey to find freedom. A young human woman becomes key to latter’s quest, although she has plans of her own."

The Witcher's Freya Allan, who plays Ciri opposite Henry Cavill in the highly successful Netflix series, is also set to star, as well as the recently announced William H. Macy.

Owen Teague (Stephen King's It) will star as the lead ape with Peter Macon (The Orville) joining the cast in an undisclosed role. The screenplay is by Josh Friedman (Terminator: Dark Fate), returning franchise writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, and Patrick Aison (Prey).

Lachman is currently filming Severance season 2, and starred in 2022's Jurassic World Dominion. The actor also had a recurring role in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and The CW's The 100.

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Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ based in New York City. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.