Long before the Planet of the Apes reboot series, and even before Tim Burton’s controversial 2001 remake, there was a time when director Oliver Stone was going to direct Planet of the Apes – and it was weird. Oliver Stone is an American director who has led movies such as Platoon, JFK, and Born on the Fourth of July. Stone has enjoyed a very long and industrious career both as a director and an executive producer. Thus, it isn’t entirely a surprise that Stone was chosen for the Planet of the Apes franchise, despite his strange concept.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Fox was eager to revive the Planet of the Apes franchise. For context, the original Planet of the Apes movies ended with Battle for the Planet of the Apes in 1973. In this way, Fox went through a number of different directors and screenwriters searching for the perfect reboot of the popular sci-fi franchise. They eventually ended up picking Tim Burton, whose 2001 Planet of the Apes was considered one of the worst reboots ever. However, there was another Planet of the Apes that could have happened during that time period, and it was spearheaded by Oliver Stone.
Oliver Stone’s Original Planet Of The Apes Movie Idea Was Wild
How Stone’s Planet Of The Apes Compares To Other Ape Movies
In the ’90s, Oliver Stone had an idea for a new Planet of the Apes movie. It was called Return of the Apes, and copies of the screenplay are even available online for the public to read. According to Stone, Return of the Apes centered on a group of cryogenically frozen apes who hold numeric codes which, if analyzed with the Bible, will predict the end of civilization. Apparently, Stone liked the idea that the Bible held some secret code that would reveal the end of times, and these frozen apes would miraculously be the key.
Stone’s Return of the Apes is hilariously odd, even in a franchise that is dependent on the concept of intelligent apes. Though Planet of the Apes has often cast its animal characters in important roles in society, they have never before been connected to the Bible, or really any religion at all. Furthermore, cryogenically freezing the apes is another detail that feels humorously out of the ordinary for the franchise. Stone’s concept leaves many wondering how the humans come in, and where this reboot connects to past iterations of Planet of the Apes.
Mad Max Writer Terry Hayes’ Script Made Return Of The Apes Even Weirder
Terry Hayes’ Planet Of The Apes Comes Closer To Franchise Reality
After Oliver Stone pitched his Biblical Planet of the Apes concept, he hired Terry Hayes to write the story. Hayes had previously worked on the Mad Max sequels, The Road Warrior and Beyond Thunderdome. Ultimately, Hayes did not use Stone’s idea of Biblical numeric codes inside frozen apes. Instead, he crafted a story that used ancient religions to pit the past and present against each other, with secrets to be uncovered by the human characters. However, despite how this sounds, Hayes’ version of Return of the Apes was somehow even stranger than Stone’s.
Terry Hayes’
Return of the Apes
began with a scene where human babies are dying out from a mysterious disease wherein they are born old.
Terry Hayes’ Return of the Apes began with a scene where human babies are dying out from a mysterious disease wherein they are born old. Though the babies come out in small baby form, they are covered in wrinkles, and presumably, are many years old. After this first scene, the movie then moves to an old baby autopsy. Overall, this situation is just as odd as Stone’s Bible code concept. Although, in some ways, Hayes got closer to the reality of Planet of the Apes, as Rise of the Planet of the Apes institutes the Simian Flu.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Was Attached To Star In The Movie
Return Of The Apes’ Will Robinson Explained
The cherry on top of Oliver Stone’s Return of the Apes is that 1980s action star Arnold Schwarzenegger was set to star as the lead human in the film. During Return of the Apes’ development, Schwarzenegger was at the peak of his career. Notably, he had just garnered popularity for his films Conan the Barbarian and The Terminator. In this way, Schwarzenegger was the perfect celebrity to throw into this exciting revival. However, it is important to note that the actor’s Planet of the Apes character wasn’t exactly the type of role he usually played at that time.
Arnold Schwarzenegger would go on to play scientists in
Junior
and
Batman and Robin.
In Return of the Apes, Schwarzenegger was going to play Will Robinson, a scientist who is trying to solve the mystery of the old baby illness. Robinson believes the disease was placed into human genetics a very long time ago. Thus, he travels back in time and discovers that the world is not ruled by cavemen, but by intelligent talking apes. Ultimately, Robinson discovers that the apes were the ones to implement the old baby disease to wipe out human civilization. This scientific role would have been an interesting turn for Schwarzenegger after mostly playing buff action heroes.
How Return Of The Apes Would Have Changed The Franchise Canon Forever
The Fate Of The Planet Of The Apes Reboot Explained
If Return of the Apes had been made in the 1990s, it would have completely changed the course of the Planet of the Apes franchise as it is known today. Perhaps if the film was poorly made like Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes was, the Planet of the Apes franchise would have continued on its path towards Rise of the Planet of the Apes. However, if Return of the Apes had been successful, it seems likely that the 2011 reboot series never would have happened. Instead, audiences would have gotten several more strange Stone and Hayes movies.
|
Planet of the Apes Movies |
Release Year |
|---|---|
|
Planet of the Apes |
1968 |
|
Beneath the Planet of the Apes |
1970 |
|
Escape from the Planet of the Apes |
1971 |
|
Conquest of the Planet of the Apes |
1972 |
|
Battle for the Planet of the Apes |
1973 |
|
Planet of the Apes (remake) |
2001 |
|
Rise of the Planet of the Apes |
2011 |
|
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes |
2014 |
|
War for the Planet of the Apes |
2017 |
|
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes |
2024 |
Ultimately, it is a good thing that Return of the Apes never happened. Although its quirky plot would likely have been enjoyable to watch, there is a chance that audiences would not have been able to take the story seriously. The movie could have halted the Planet of the Apes franchise completely. Overall, it is better that Stone’s reboot never came to be because it resulted in the modern reboot series, which is highly successful and very well-done. Without Rise of the Planet of the Apes and its sequels, who knows where Planet of the Apes would be today.
Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes is a multimedia sci-fi franchise that began in 1963 with Pierre Boulle’s novel, which was later adapted into a film in 1968 starring Charlton Heston. The success of the movie led to four sequels, two TV shows, a remake from Tim Burton, and a reboot trilogy. The Planet of the Apes franchise has also seen success in video games and comic books.
- Created by
- Pierre Boulle
- Cast
- Charlton Heston , Roddy McDowall , Kim Hunter , Maurice Evans , James Whitmore , Linda Harrison , Mark Wahlberg , Helena Bonham Carter , Tim Roth , Michael Clarke Duncan , Paul Giamatti , James Franco , Andy Serkis , John Lithgow , Freida Pinto , Gary Oldman , Keri Russell , Kodi Smit-McPhee , Jason Clarke , Toby Kebbell , Judy Greer , Woody Harrelson , Amiah Miller , Kevin Durand , Dichen Lachman , William H. Macy , Owen Teague , Freya Allan
- TV Show(s)
- Planet of the Apes , Return to the Planet of the Apes