 The series was originally planned to be a limited series. A new cast  was hired to play the characters from the original  _"Mission: Impossible" (1966)_ (qv), and the episodes were all going  to remake original series scripts. This changed when  Peter Graves (I) (qv) returned to the role of Jim Phelps; the  other characters were then renamed, and the show became a  continuation of the original.