Beneath the Planet of the Apes

Beneath the Planet of the Apes is a 1970 motion picture. It was the first sequel to the 1968 movie Planet of the Apes. It stars Charlton Heston in a very small supporting role, and James Franciscus.

Trivia

• Since Roddy McDowall was unavailable to return for this sequel (he was directing a movie overseas at the time), David Watson assumed the role of Cornelius. Not counting the animated TV series, this would be the only original Apes project in which McDowall did not take part, although his voice can still be heard in the opening in footage taken from the first film.
• The storyline originally called for the worshiped bomb to destroy the warring apes and humans underground, as Taylor and Nova escaped, and for the survivors to found a new society.
• Charlton Heston showed little interest in reprising his role from the first movie and agreed to appear for only a short stint of filming under the condition that his entire salary would be donated to charity. The initial plan was to kill off Taylor early in the film; the producers chose instead to have Heston's cameo broken into bookended opening and closing sequences in the film, including giving him the key moment of the conclusion.
• In the documentary Behind the Planet of the Apes Chartlon Heston claimed that the idea for Taylor to destroy the world was his. He hoped that this would put an end to further sequels.
• This movie mentions the "Hasslein Curve", a rift in time that sent both Taylor and Brent's ships back to Earth, far in its future. This is the second reference to Dr. Otto Hasslein, who appears in the next sequel, Escape.
• The role of Brent was originally intended for Burt Reynolds.
• The role of General Ursus was originally supposed to be played by Orson Welles.