In the opening episode, two elements of the original series L'île fantastique (1977) are referenced: the white suits (Roarke in this series makes a point of choosing black) and the infamous "The plane! The plane!" announcement (Roarke orders the underling who does this never to do it again). In a later episode we see a woman living in a trailer with a Ricardo Montalban commemorative plate.
Malcolm McDowell plays Mr. Roarke, who was played by Ricardo Montalbán in the 1977 series. Both men had previously played the main adversaries in Star Trek movies: Montalbán played Khan Noonien Singh in Star Trek II : La Colère de Khan (1982), and McDowell played Dr. Tolian Soran in Star Trek : Générations (1994).