Carroll and the authorities walk in the vivarium to see the chimpanzees loose. Meanwhile, in the vivarium, some of the chimpanzees have unlocked their cages and have stacked crates and boxes to attempt an escape through a skylight. Carroll promises Jimmy that his military career is finished. However, the chimpanzees would not be as aware thus, the project is flawed. Carroll (William Sadler) and others about the project's value by noting that the hypothetical pilot, knowing the implications of the second-strike scenario, would know that he is dying, and would, therefore, be affected by that knowledge. Teri tells Jimmy that she will inform the NSF of the deception, but Jimmy explains that she does not have enough time because Virgil is scheduled to die soon. When Jimmy becomes aware of the chimpanzees' fate, he contacts Teri, who comes to the base. Unbeknownst to Jimmy, once the chimpanzees reach a certain level in operating the flight simulator, they will be exposed to a lethal pulse of radiation to determine how long a pilot may survive after a nuclear exchange in carrying out a second-strike. Virgil and Jimmy quickly bond, and Jimmy discovers that Virgil has been taught sign language. He is taken to an Air Force base in Lockridge, Florida, to be used in a top-secret research project involving flight simulation, though she's told that he's been sent to the Houston Zoo.Īirman Jimmy Garrett (Matthew Broderick) is assigned to the same chimpanzee project. When her National Science Foundation research grant is not renewed, she is forced to sell Virgil. University of Wisconsin graduate student Teri MacDonald (Helen Hunt) has trained a chimpanzee named Virgil (Willie) to use sign language.

Chimpanzee movie