With Reporting by Josh Horowitz
So, Keri Russell’s “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” character is actually Felicity Porter.
Yes, we’re serious. Kind of. Okay, not totally serious, but maybe? Hear us out: In “Dawn,” Russell plays Ellie, a former nurse who worked at the Center for Disease Control. On “Felicity,” Russell played Felicity, a University of New York graduate on her way to becoming a medical professional.
Coincidence? Maybe. But there’s something else to consider: Matt Reeves, director of “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” is also the co-creator of “Felicity.”
When we posed the possibility to Russell herself, the “Felicity” veteran shared our suspicions. She said that when she first arrived to the “Dawn” set, there were a few clues pointing to the “Apes”-”Felicity” conspiracy theory.
“I got into hair and makeup and they said, ‘Matt keeps talking about … when you used to have your hair on ‘Felicity,’ it was very textured and curly,’” she said. “And I was just like, ‘Where is my blown out hair and cat eyeliner and too tight jeans?’ But you know what, I think there’s a part of Matt that did want that. I think he wanted that sweet, sensitive brave girl with that curly fro.”
In actuality, Russell only plays Felicity in the “Dawn” of our hearts, and our fan-fiction. But even if the characters aren’t exact, there’s a common bond between them, and that’s all because of Reeves.
“Even all those years ago making a TV show about a girl following a boy all the way across the country to go to school, I think, ideally, the story [Reeves is] always trying to tell is this intimate story about people trying to be brave — which I think he did in this story, too,” she said. “I think that’s this movie’s strength, on top of all the incredible things that Weta does, and Andy Serkis, and the phenomenon of him in general. I think Matt really created a big, summer, beautiful, exciting movie with these intimate moments of people trying to be brave.”
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” hits theaters this weekend.
Josh Wigler
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