The outline Planet of the Apes script, originally written by Serling, underwent many rewrites before filming eventually began. The apes have assumed the role of the dominant species and humans are mute creatures wearing animal skins. Although the planet appears desolate at first, the surviving crew members stumble upon a society in which apes have evolved into creatures with human-like intelligence and speech. In the film, an astronaut crew crash-lands on a strange planet in the distant future. The film stars Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, James Daly, and Linda Harrison.

Schaffner from a screenplay by Michael Wilson and Rod Serling, loosely based on the 1963 novel by Pierre Boulle. Planet of the Apes is a 1968 American science fiction film directed by Franklin J.