Changes: Rocket

Revision as of 23:13, 23 April 2014

Why cookie Rocket?

Rocket is a chimpanzee who was the Alpha at the San Bruno Primate Shelter before and during Caesar's time at the shelter. He was a typical bully until Caesar outsmarted him and took his place as Alpha. Settling their differences aside, the two became the most unlikeliest of allies. During the Ape Rebellion, Caesar tasks Rocket as one of his lead lieutenants. After ten years, the two are still best friends and Rocket is still one of Caesar's closest companions. He is the father of Ash.

History

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Rocket was the dominant male at the San Bruno Primate Shelter in which Caesar is forced to live after he attacks his next door neighbour. In Caesar's early days at the shelter, Rocket bullied him and established dominance over him. This doesn't last long. Tired of being picked on, Caesar uses his above average intelligence to outsmart the alpha and take his place. Rocket is somewhat reluctant but is forced to acknowledge Caesar as his successor thanks to the gorilla, Buck. When Caesar unleashes the ALZ-113 virus on the sleeping apes, Rocket becomes infected and becomes one of Caesar's most loyal companions during the battle on the Golden Gate Bridge. On the bridge, Caesar commands Rocket to lead a group of apes to go up the side of the bridge and await his command while Maurice and his new Orangutan friends take the bridge from underneath. Rocket also served as one of the leaders of the battle by standing at Caesar's side while the waited for the humans to unleash their attack.

The next time Rocket is seen is in the forest with Maurice (and possibly Cornelia) when Caesar is saying his final goodbyes to his adoptive human father, Will.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

10 years after Caesar's takeover and the outbreak of the Simian Flu, Rocket is still faithful to Caesar and is still one of his closest companions. He, like Caesar, will be the father of a teenage son named Ash.

More information to come...

Personality

At first, Rocket appeared to be an arrogant, cruel and cold bully who harassed and traumatised Caesar. He enjoys power and shows immense pride in being in charge. After being overthrown by Caesar, Rocket became a worthwhile ally and his sense of pride deminished and because Caesar's takeover of the what would become the ape colony, Rocket realised there was more to power then originally thought and that there was no need to be brutal to be a great leader.

More to come…

Abilities

Skilled Combatant: Rocket is a skilled combatant and was one of the primary warriors of the Battle of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Relationships

Maurice

Though they have little to no interaction, Rocket and Maurice seemed to be civil.

More to Come...

Caesar

Dawn-of-the-planet-of-the-apes-ew-1 — Rocket with Caesar, his best friend, king, and former rival.

Rocket and Caesar's relationship didn't have a good start at first. When Caesar tries to befriend him but the Alpha male started to bully him for no apparent reason. After Caesar befriended Buck the Gorilla, Caesar is able to lure Rocket out of his cage to the play area, and is able to overthrow him as Rocket knows he is no match for the gorilla. Rocket and Caesar are able to settle their differences and they become the most unlikeliest of friends with him serving as one of Caesar's key lieutenants during the ape rebellion and battle on the Golden Gate Bridge. Rocket ends up becoming Caesar's best friend and loyal follower.

Over the next ten years, Rocket and Caesar are still best friends with Rocket being Caesar's right hand Ape.

More to Come...

Ash

Ash is Rocket's teenage son.

More to Come...

Notes

Most of the other apes in the movie had significant names, and Rick Jaffa claimed on the DVD feature that Rocket was named in tribute to Norman Rockett, a set designer on the first movie.

An earlier version of the script differed in that Rocket's eyes begin to go green (a sign of intelligence) after having bitten Caesar during their initial confrontation. After Caesar and Rocket together escape the primate facility and visit both Will's house and the Gen-Sys lab, they use stolen scissors to share their blood with the other apes at the facility and thus pass on their viral intelligence. In this version of the script, Rocket dies on the Golden Gate Bridge after being shot by Dodge Landon, who was aiming for Caesar.

Terry Notary, who played Rocket, had also worked on Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes in 2001, as a movement instructor and stunt coordinator on both films. He also played Bright Eyes.

Terry Notary played Rocket's motion capture role but (unlike the other ape actors) also did the vocal effects for Rocket, according to Rupert Wyatt on the director's commentary on the Blu-Ray version of Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

In an earlier version of the script, as confirmed by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver while being interviewed, Rocket was originally the flim's antagonist but in the final film Rocket instead became one of Caesar's right-hand apes. The other being Maurice.
Rocket is mistaken by Andy Serkis as a baboon, even though that Rocket is a chimp and baboons aren't a type of ape, they are large monkeys.
Rocket is present in the first offical still from Dawn. He is on Caesar's left. He also appears in the first trailer for the film as this is where the still is from.

Trivia

Rocket is due to return in Dawn and will be played once again by Terry Notary.
It is unknown how much interaction Rocket will have with Caesar's family in Dawn and whether he will have a family of his own.
According to an interview, it is said that Rocket will be Caesar's right hand ape but struggles with being intelligent.
Rocket has a son named Ash.
It is currently unknown who the mother of Ash is.