Mission: Impossible Was Almost Very Different Thanks to One Character

It’s easy to forget that the Mission: Impossible movies are rooted in an old TV show. After all, today the franchise is known for Tom Cruise’s elaborate stuntwork, not constant reminders of 1960s pop culture. Plus, many of the franchise’s most famous modern characters like Benji and Ilsa Faust are newly created concoctions, not rejiggerings of staples of the old TV show. Yet, despite these realities, the entire Mission: Impossible saga is rooted in a CBS TV show of the same name that ran from 1966 to 1973. This was slightly more apparent with the 1996 movie that kicked off this whole film franchise, which did employ a pivotal character from the original TV program.

If original casting plans for this Brian de Palma film had gone through, though, this feature would’ve also brought back a cast member from that program, too. In the process, the entire trajectory, continuity, and public perception of the Mission: Impossible saga would’ve changed forever.  

Who Was Jim Phelps in 1996’s Mission: Impossible?

While Ethan Hunt and most of the other characters in 1996’s Mission: Impossible were newly created figures, the initial leader of Hunt’s Impossible Mission Force agents, Jim Phelps, was most certainly not freshly created. Phelps was so important to the original Mission: Impossible that he even reappeared in the 1980s TV revival. Both incarnations of the character were played by Peter Graves, who lent the character distinctive characteristics like an ability to play any alias IMF needed him to. An avuncular IMF director, Phelps became a fan-favorite authority figure that proved to be one of the most lastingly influential elements of the franchise’s pre-1996 incarnation.

For the movie version, Phelps was portrayed by silver-screen legend Jon Voight, a choice (on the surface) made to accentuate that this franchise was now in big-screen territory. Immediately depicted as a similarly knowledgeable and reliable authority figure, Phelps is depicted as the mentor of Hunt. His existence in this movie seemingly comes to an abrupt close when he’s viciously killed (along with the other members of Hunt’s IMF team) during a mission gone haywire. In the moment, his death is supposed to make viewers worry that anyone could be vulnerable to these evil forces if Jon Voight isn’t safe.

Eventually, though, Phelps is revealed as Mission: Impossible’s main villain. He’s been pulling the strings on all kinds of evil deeds, including the elimination of those IMF agents. Eventually, Mission: Impossible culminates in Hunt engaging in a race against time to thwart Phelps, which results in the man perishing in a train tunnel. The mentee has bested his mentor and saved the world in a classically Ethan Hunt style, with mere minutes to spare.

[RELATED: Tom Cruise Risked Suffocation in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning Stunt]

This whole plot turn was meant to keep audiences on their toes, subvert expectations, and fully immerse people in the new era of Mission: Impossible characters. After all, Hunt and his friends were the heroes, while Graves was an evildoer who didn’t even survive for potential sequels. This saga belonged to the next generation. This passing of the torch could’ve had even more bizarre connotations, though, if the original plans to bring back Peter Graves as Phelps had gone through.

Why Didn’t Peter Graves Come Back as Phelps?

Given that Peter Graves happily portrayed Phelps in the 1980s incarnation of Mission: Impossible, it’s clear that the actor has no qualms about reprising this critical role in his career. However, Graves quickly turned down the prospect of following the Mission: Impossible franchise to the big screen no matter how big of a paycheck he could’ve received or platform the brand name got. Graves was simply not interested in playing a version of Phelps that was evil. Refusing to stick around for what he saw as a desecration of this beloved character, Graves passed on this role.

It’s not surprising to hear Graves having qualms with a radically new version of Jim Phelps. What is staggering to consider is that the Mission: Impossible movies almost began with such an explicit connection to the original TV show. This wasn’t just taking a character name from the old CBS program, the original ambition was to explicitly bring back the same Phelps from previous Mission: Impossible media. The mind reels as to what other ways the two versions of Mission: Impossible could’ve co-mingled if this casting had followed through. Would the door have been opened for, say, Mission: Impossible II to become a Spider-Man: No Way Home of Mission: Impossible films, bringing back various actors who portrayed IMF agents in the ’60s and ’80s?

Such scenarios will only forever exist in the minds of Mission: Impossible fans. The commitment from Graves to not sullying the original version of Jim Phelps ensured that the Mission: Impossible movies and TV shows were firmly detached from the very start. What prevented the inaugural installment from having a special dose of fan-service also cemented the Mission: Impossible saga’s ability to stand on its own separate from the CBS production that spawned it.

Mission: Impossible is now streaming on Paramount+

What did you think of this character change for the movie? Let us know in the comments below!