'Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes' actor says character is 'metaphor for evolution'

LOS ANGELES -- It all started with a movie back in 1968, when Charlton Heston led the cast of "Planet of the Apes." More movies followed. Then came TV series, TV movies, and even a Saturday morning animated series. Now, 56 years later, the franchise continues with a new story to tell in "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes."

Freya Allan plays one of the few humans in the new film and shares that her character's journey "is like a metaphor for evolution."

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This film is set years after the last film and times have changed drastically. These days, apes rule the world with humans living a more challenging existence.

"She goes to places she didn't even know she would go to, you know? Or that she could," Allan said. "And that's survival kicking in and trying to complete something in honor of, you know, her loved ones, essentially. And, you know, humanity is on her shoulders."

Peter Macon plays a wise orangutan known as Raka.

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"And it is my job to teach and to help grow, you know, the collective consciousness of our species," he said.

Owen Teague plays the film's young hero, Noa, whose journey is key to the future of both apes and of humans. He's fascinated by the technology that turned him into an ape.

"[It] literally captured bits," he said. "Things that I do as a person, just like little ways that my face moves and put them on an ape and it's mind-blowing every single time I see it because it is me!"

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Joelle Garguilo sat down with the two of the actors who brought the apes to life on screen.

"So you're seeing apes, but it's our exact expressions," said Kevin Durand. "It's our exact performances. It's just a little hairier"

Of course, there would be no kingdom here without a king. And that's Durand.

"It's so fun," he said. "It's so fun to be bad."

Watch "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" in theaters nationwide starting May 10.

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