Thank God scientists finally found the missing link (aka Darwinius masillae, aka “Ida”). Now we can at last prove Charles Darwin right and be done with films like Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, as well as all the seemingly pro-science movies that inadvertently ruined the theory of evolution. We now look forward to the “Ida” biopic, or at least a movie detailing the 26 years (give or take 47 million) it took for the discovery of her fossil to become a mainstream media sensation. Never mind that this is hardly the missing link between apes and humans. With almost 50 years passed since the release of Inherit the Wind, film-loving Darwinists need some kind of missing link story to grab onto.

It is true that cinema has not been so kind to Darwinism, giving us such mockeries as Evolution, Howard the Duck and Creature from the Black Lagoon. But filmmakers have consistently shown a special love for the concept of the missing link, at least. Although many movies depict the idea with little seriousness, and some feature negative portrayals of primitive monsters, there are a number of truly lovable creatures that represent the concept of the missing link on film. Check them out after the jump.

“Harry” from Harry and the Hendersons (1987)

Bigfoot, Sasquatch, whatever you call it, the legendary beast supposedly hiding out in forests across America is thought to be relative to the missing link between man and ape. If they exist, let’s hope they’re as gentle and cuddly and E.T.-like as Harry (Kevin Peter Hall), the friend/pet adopted by John Lithgow and family in Harry and the Hendersons. Chances are they’re not, because obviously such primitive creatures have to be monsters. Or, maybe we just always think they’re monsters because we don’t understand them.

“Wild Willie” from The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy (1915)

This ape-like character from Willis H. O’Brien’s early silent stop-motion short is technically the film’s villain. But we only know this from a title card that reads, “Wild Willie, the Missing Link, is the terror of the countryside.” However, he does nothing wrong in the 6-minute movie, and he’s actually kind of cute in a claymation sort of way. He’s certainly more lovable than the dumb cavemen protagonists, and it’s therefore quite sad, rather than satisfying, when Willie is killed by a dinosaur while trying to fetch some snakes for his dinner.

“Trog” from Trog (1970)

Like Wild Willie, Trog (Joe Cornelius) is sold as a villain (see the trailer above), but he’s more of a misunderstood, Frankenstein’s Monster type. This primitive being’s only crime is that he is different, and though he does end up killing some people, it’s only out of self-defense. It’s not Trog’s fault that Joan Crawford (who is much more frightening than an “apeman” with human arms, we might add) plucked him out of his cave in order to study and tame him. And it’s not his fault that evil religious types like Michael Gough want to destroy evidence of evolution (obviously that’s his true motive). Trog just wanted to do his thing, sock it to Bertha Butt once in awhile (listen to the Jimmy Castor Bunch to get this reference) and live his simple Troglodyte life.

“The Missing Link” from Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)

An obvious nod to the Gill Man from Creature from the Black Lagoon, this 20,000-year-old creature (voiced by Will Arnett) is apparently the evolutionary connector of fish and primates, or something. Again, he’s considered a monster due to his prehistoric appearance and is locked away by the U.S. military along with other misunderstood freaks. But aside from trying to come off more macho than he is, the Missing Link is a pretty nice guy. He just likes the co-eds, and the only way for someone as ugly as him to get one is to steal her away.

“Ape Man” from Return of the Ape Man (1944)

Here is another innocent creature branded a monster simply because of his primitive instincts. This “Ape Man” (Frank Moran) is probably just a Cro-Magnon man, but we’ll consider him an evolutionary link due to the film’s treatment of him as such. Thawed out from a block of ice in the Arctic by Bela Lugosi, his only fault is that he’s less intelligent than modern humans. Fortunately Bela is good with brain transplants, and soon enough Mr. Ape Man is a terrific pianist.

“Link” from Encino Man (1992)

Like the “Ape Man,” the similarly thawed-out Link (Brendan Fraser) is just a regular old caveman, but at least there’s a nod to evolution with the alias he receives from his new friends/discoverers (Pauly Shore and Sean Astin). With the full given name Linkavitch Chomofski, this prehistoric fish-out-water assimilates into high school as an exchange student and becomes very popular with teens, partly because he’s such a terrific dancer (see the scene above). Science teachers could have used him as a gateway to Darwinist teachings if only Pauly Shore weren’t onscreen illustrating proof of devolution.

“Fred Flintstone” from The Flintstones (1994)

As long as other Neanderthals make the list, Fred Flinstone and family must be recognized. Of course, Fred, Wilma, Barney and the rest are somewhat more missing links than true cavemen, because they coexist with dinosaurs and appear to live in a time offset from normal evolutionary theory (the “Stone Age family” stuff is just a ruse). Do they come from apes, or is it that they were the ones to mate with apes in order to spawn modern humans? Maybe the Flinstones have extraterrestrial origins? Then again, maybe they better exemplify creationism since they transcend eras normally thought to exclude humans.

Martian from Mission to Mars (2000)

Even if the Flintstones were around earlier than we thought, this wouldn’t necessarily prove Creationists right. In Brian De Palma’s Mission to Mars there is another sort of missing link that people tend to dismiss along with the theory that aliens impregnated the “virgin” Mary. This is the link between life on Earth and prior life, from elsewhere, which seeded our planet. The Martian at the end of the movie (sorry if this is a spoiler — the movie isn’t worth seeing anyway), who isn’t so much our ancestor as our trillionth cousin thrice removed, is kind of creepy but also kind of sexy in a blood-soaked Sissy Spacek sort of way (this is the director of Carrie).

Apes (or Monolith) from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1969)

Probably the most famous missing links in all of cinema, the apes from Kubrick’s classic sci-fi film are depicted not as a separate species but as the tribe of primates that first began using tools, like modern humans. They’re kind of scary, but they’re at least lovable in a cinephilia way, and despite their violent manner they look like they might actually be huggable. One thing, though, the true missing link in the film may actually be the alien-derived monolith, since its arrival triggers the apes’ progress. In terms of cinephilia, it’s still just as lovable, though maybe not as huggable.

Man-ape (or Peter Elliott) from Missing Link (1988)

Honestly, we haven’t seen Carol and David Hughes’ film, which depicts the wandering story of the last of the man-ape species. But considering the creature is played by Peter Elliott, “primary primate” of the movies, we’re going to assume he’s as lovable as the titular gorilla from Buddy and Bollo in the first season of The Mighty Boosh. Actually, given how well Elliott is at portraying and choreographing the animals in Gorillas in the Mist, Congo and other films, we should probably theorize that he’s the real missing link.