Summary
ThePlanet of the Apesfranchise has been dormant for several years sinceWar For The Planet Of The Apesconcluded the prequel trilogy, which left things close to the state in which the series picked up in the very beginning. Apes had become the dominant species on the planet, and humans were beginning to regress and lose intelligence, and even the ability to speak, due to the effects of Simian Flu.
However, the franchise is much longer and more detailed than many fans realize. There have been many films and all sorts of villains, both human and ape, who have helped represent the divisions between the races. From the beginningthrough toKingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes, these are some of the best villains in the series’ history.
8Dodge Landon
Showcased Casual Human Cruelty
There are villains in thePlanet of the Apesfranchise who commit true atrocities, but there are also those who are simply cruel and easy to hate as a result. Tom Felton starred in the first of the trilogy of prequels as Dodge Landon, a young man working at his father’s ape shelter.
The horrible ways in which Dodge treated the apes at the shelter, including Caesar when he was later brought there, are reminiscent of the casual cruelty that apes showed to humankind in the original films. This made it easy for viewers to root for the apes to escape if only to stop Dodge, which Caesar eventually did when he broke out and inadvertently killed himbefore escaping across the Golden Gate Bridgewith the other apes.
7Governor Breck
The Face Of Ape Oppression
The originalPlanet of the Apesfilms moved to 1970s Earth after the first two entries, only for viewers in the know to watch as modern Earth slowly moved toward that horrible future.Conquest of the Planet of the Apessaw apes being brutally oppressed and used for slave work by humans, at the behest of Governor Breck, who was in charge of the police state that the original Caesar found himself in.
Breck wasn’t the most evil human, he was simply the face of the oppressive world, and he was another leader who was fine with the status quo and the horrific treatment of apes that had sprung up around him. Breck was the perfect example of a power-hungry individual who is fine with oppressing whoever he must to retain his position, and he was brought low by a revolution as so many such leaders are.
6General Aldo
The Aggressive Side Of Ape Nature
There have been various times throughout the franchise’s history when leaders on both sides who see the good in their enemies have been shoved aside in favor of aggressive, hate-filled warmongers. General Aldo appeared in the final entry of the original series, opposing the peaceful way in which Caesar was content to let humans roam Ape City, doing menial labor jobs.
Aldo rose up, attacking Caesar’s son, causing his death, and rounding up all humans that were left in an attempt at a coup against Caesar. However, Aldo was eventually found out, and the apes turned against him for breaking their sacred law that “ape shall never kill ape,” leading to his death at the hands of Caesar, and peace once again between the races.
5Dr. Otto Hasslein
The Face Of Paranoia
When the futuristic Earth where apes were dominant was destroyed inBeneath The Planet Of The Apes, it was unclear how the franchise would continue at first. It managed to do so by revealing that Dr. Cornelius and Dr. Zira escaped in a ship, and were subsequently transported back to 1970s Earth, where they ran into Dr. Hasslein, science advisor to the President.
Hasslein is suspicious from the start, showcasing the natural growth of paranoia throughout the film as he first attempts to weasel more information about their society from Cornelius and Zira, then convinces the President to abort Zira’s pregnancy and sterilize them. Though Hasslein succeeded in killing Zira and her child, it wasn’t before she switched babies with another ape, ensuring her son would live on, and Hasslein himself was killed by Cornelius before his own death.
4Proximus Caesar
The Twisted King
A fascinating idea; Proximus Caesar is the villain of thelatest entry in thePlanet of the Apesfranchise. The leader of a large ape tribe that seeks out old human technologies, Proximus attempts to twist the teachings of Caesar for his gain, presenting himself intelligently as the natural heir to the great ape hero.
Proximus is a typical opportunist who takes power and seeks more constantly, only wanting to expand his empire and twisting whatever he must to make his followers believe in his path. Proximus may have failed, but he showed many others how they can gain power, and the apes may find more leaders like him who don’t have their best interests at heart in the future.
3Colonel McCullough
The Most Deadly Paranoia Case
The final installment of the prequel trilogysaw Woody Harrelson’s brutal Colonelas the main villain. The Colonel had begun his militia after disagreeing with his superiors, who wanted tofind a cure for the Simian Flu, and ordering his men to kill all who showed signs of infection, even his son.
McCullough’s crimes only began there, as he invaded Caesar’s colony, killed his son and wife, and then put the rest of the apes in the colony to work building a wall. The Colonel was so desperate not to begin regressing and losing his intelligence, but his cruelty was his downfall. He contracted the Simian Flu after confiscating a child’s toy, and Caesar allowed him to kill himself rather than do it for him.
2Doctor Zaius
The World-Ender
The original villain of the series, Doctor Zaius appeared in the original film as a leader attempting to disprove and hide evidence of human intelligence, seeking to keep apes atop the societal structure and humans underfoot by lobotomizing and castrating the human astronauts that landed on the planet. He even succeeded in his goals, until the sequel, when things took a turn.
The revelation of the mutated underground humans led to a stand-off inBeneath The Planet Of The Apes, something that could have been avoided if Zaius hadn’t contributed to ape society being so brutal to humans. He continued to not listen to reason, shooting Taylor and leading to him activating the doomsday bomb, destroying the entirety of Earth as a result of his ignorance.
1Koba
The War-Starter
The most significant and heart-breaking villain in the series to date is, without a doubt, the treacherous Koba. This ape was freed by Caesar inRise Of The Planet Of The Apesand fought with him against the humans to escape and form their own society. He worked with Caesar for years and became one of his lieutenants in their tribe before his rage and hatred of humanity led him to betray Caesar.
InDawn Of The Planet Of The Apes, though the humans were distrustful of apes,they were not the ones who began the war. Koba, attacking the human armory and killing Carver, sets fire to the ape colony and attempts to kill Caesar, all to take control of the apes and turn them against the humans. There was no reason behind this, and it led to all the wars with humans that followed. Caesar would manage to return and kill Koba, but the war that Koba sought with humanity had already been achieved. As the franchise moves on,and possibly to other media, more great villains like Koba are expected to appear.
