When asked if there is a chance of Leonard Nimoy reprising his Great Paris role in the fourth 'M:I' movie, producer J.J. Abrams says, 'How cool would that be?'
- Oct 9, 2009
AceShowbiz - The door of possibility that Leonard Nimoy may reprise his TV series role as The Great Paris in the forthcoming "Mission: Impossible 4" wasn't slammed shut by J.J. Abrams. Asked to address the matter when speaking to the press on Thursday, October 8 at the Viceroy Hotel in Santa Monica, the producer uttered, "How cool would that be?"
The "Star Trek" director continued by mentioning Peter Graves who plays James Phelps, the leader of the elite IMF in the series. "I just got a call that Peter Graves is in great shape, which would be a very bizarre bend in the space-time continuum, for obvious reasons," he said as quoted by Collider. "I almost feel like you could make him serious again and bringing him back. Whether it's Nimoy, who I have an incredible affinity for, or Graves, or anyone, we'll see."
Abrams also recalled that he once tried to get Martin Landau to reprise his role as Rollin Hand for "Mission: Impossible 3". He shared, "I actually tried to get Martin Landau in Mission 3, in a very small little moment just for fun, and was told that he had no interest in doing it. But then, when I met him, after the movie came out, it was the greatest thing."
"We were at this restaurant in New York, for one of the TV Upfront parties, and someone introduced me to Landau," the 43-year-old said. "They took me over and Martin Landau came over to me, extended his hand, and [pretended to lift his face off]. That was the greatest thing I'd ever seen."
Leonard Nimoy portrayed The Great Paris in the original series of "Mission: Impossible" from 1969 to 1971. His character who is a retired magician joined the Impossible Missions Force in the first mission of season four. A master of role play, languages and disguises, he was a replacement for Rollin Hand who left the secret government team at the end of season three.
"Mission: Impossible 4" is set to be co-produced by Tom Cruise, the star of the "Mission: Impossible" film series. While no other detail has been confirmed just yet, Variety reported that Ethan Hunt "will certainly be involved in an on-screen capacity." Scribes Josh Applebaum and Andre Nemec are set to pen the screenplay based on a story producer Abrams wrote with them.
