Question
Who played Dr. Cornelius in 1968’s Planet of the Apes?

Who played Dr. Cornelius in 1968’s Planet of the Apes?

Last updated: July 26, 2024

Remember those nights when you'd stay up way too late, glued to the TV, watching sci-fi marathons? For many of us, that meant diving into the Planet of the Apes franchise. And let's be real, if you haven't seen Beneath the Planet of the Apes with its underground-dwelling, telepathic humans, you're missing out on some prime 70s weirdness.

Fast forward to today, and we've got a whole new Apes saga. It's like Hollywood looked at the original timeline—you know, the one where an ape from the future becomes his own ancestor—and said, "Nah, too simple. Let's reboot this bad boy." But hey, at least we don't have to explain why the Statue of Liberty is just chilling on a beach anymore.

Now, let's monkey around with some OG Apes trivia. In the 1968 classic that started it all, we met Dr. Cornelius, the chimpanzee archaeologist with a heart of gold and nerves of... well, a very nervous chimp. This guy was the voice of reason in a world gone bananas, trying to bridge the gap between apes and humans while probably wishing he'd chosen a less stressful career. Like banana peeling. Or vine swinging.

But here's the kicker: portraying an ape in the 60s wasn't just about slapping on some fur and calling it a day. The makeup was groundbreaking, but it also meant actors had to work twice as hard to emote through all those prosthetics. It's like trying to wink while wearing a Halloween mask—not easy, folks.

So, time to go ape with our trivia question: Which talented actor managed to bring the lovable, anxious Dr. Cornelius to life in the original 1968 Planet of the Apes, creating a character so memorable that even modern reboots can't keep their paws off him?

Click START below to answer.

The answer is: Roddy McDowall. It’s hard to tell under those costumes, but the anxious chimp archeologist in the original film adaptation of Planet of the Apes is none other than Roddy McDowall. McDowall portrayed Cornelius in four of the five original films, and even spent time portraying Caeser, which honestly it's best to not think too hard about the whole time loop weirdness in the original series of films.Source

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