The film's famous closing image—a statue of Caesar shedding a single tear—was itself the product of a bitter creative disagreement. Paul Dehn claimed that he rewrote approximately 90 percent of the dialogue and changed the ending, while the Corringtons argued that their original screenplay had concluded on a playground where ape and human children began fighting, a far darker suggestion that the cycle of prejudice and violence had not been broken. Dehn's sentimental statue shot replaced that ending. Joyce Hooper Corrington later described the tear as 'stupid' and said that seeing it made the writing team feel physically ill. The Writers Guild of America ultimately ruled in favor of the Corringtons, awarding them sole screenplay credit despite Dehn's requested shared credit and his assertion that he had substantially rewritten the script.
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AI concept artworkArchive Record · 1970s
The Tearful Caesar Ending That Made Its Own Writers Sick
Battle for the Planet of the Apes / 1970s
The film's famous closing image—a statue of Caesar shedding a single tear—was itself the product of a bitter creative disagreement. Paul Dehn claimed that he rewrote approximately 90 percent of the dialogue and changed the ending, while the Corringtons argued that their original screenplay had concluded on a playground where ape and human children began fighting, a far darker suggestion that the cycle of prejudice and violence had not been broken. Dehn's sentimental statue shot replaced that ending. Joyce Hooper Corrington later described the tear as 'stupid' and said that seeing it made the writing team feel physically ill. The Writers Guild of America ultimately ruled in favor of the Corringtons, awarding them sole screenplay credit despite Dehn's requested shared credit and his assertion that he had substantially rewritten the script.
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