Zoo Atlanta is a real-life 'Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes'

ATLANTA - The upcoming sci-fi action flick "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" is expected to be a giant at the box office — but stop by Zoo Atlanta any day of the week, and you’ll see that we’re already living on a planet of the apes!

This morning on Good Day Atlanta, we spent a few hours celebrating Ape Awareness Month (yes, April is Ape Awareness Month) at Zoo Atlanta) — not to mention also celebrating the first birthday of a certain famous zoo resident! Zoo Atlanta is home to apes, including orangutans and gorillas. One of those gorillas is Willie B., III, born at Zoo Atlanta on April 24, 2023. The 1-year-old is the son of Willie B., Jr. and Shalia and the grandson of Zoo Atlanta’s famed Willie B., who came to Atlanta in 1961 and became a true icon and ambassador for the Grant Park facility. 

Zoo Atlanta’s curator of primates — the amazing Jodi Carrigan — led us on a tour of habits for both the orangutans and gorillas, and we also checked out the cutting-edge "Gorilla Trek: A 360° Virtual Reality Experience," a virtual reality journey to the Rwandan jungle to see endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitat. And speaking of movies, "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" is set to open in theaters nationwide on May 10.

Zoo Atlanta is located at 800 Cherokee Avenue Southeast in Atlanta’s Grant Park neighborhood, and its current hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. General admission varies by date, and tickets are available for purchase online by clicking here.