Pierre Boulle

In the not-too-distant future, three astronauts land on what appears to be a planet just like Earth, with lush forests, a temperate climate, and breathable air. But while it appears to be a paradise, nothing is what it seems. They soon discover the terrifying truth : On this world humans are savage beasts, and apes rule as their civilized masters. In an ironic novel of nonstop action and breathless intrigue, one man struggles to unlock the secret...

Four American astronauts crashland on an unchartered planet and discover it is ruled by a race of intelligent apes who use a primitive race of humans for experimentation and sport. Astronaut Taylor (Heston) soon finds himelf among the hunted, his life in the hands of a benevolent chimpanzee scientist (McDowall).

In this second Planet of the apes film, apes battle human mutants who survived a nuclear blast many years before.