A CSI: NY star is jumping ship.
Hill Harper has joined USA spy drama Covert Affairs as a new series regular for season four, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
Harper, who has played Sheldon Hawkes on CSI: NY since the CBS procedural's 2004 debut, will play an ambitious CIA station chief in Latin America. Intelligent, charismatic and slightly cocky, he ascended to a very high position at a relatively young age and is plotting his way into a bigger position back in Washington. In his journey for greater power, he will attempt to make CIA operative Annie (Piper Perabo) and blind tech-op Auggie (Christopher Gorham) his allies, but his questionable actions will cause the pair to doubt his intentions.
The casting comes as CSI: NY wraps up its 17-episode ninth season Friday night. There has been ongoing speculation that the current season could be the series' last. A source tells THR that there are no actor deals in place past season nine.
Harper joins a Covert Affairs cast that includes Perabo, Gorham, Peter Gallagher and Kari Matchett. The one-hour series is executive produced by Doug Liman and David Bartis via Hypnotic and is written/executive produced by co-creators Matt Corman and Chris Ord, who signed an overall deal with studio Universal Cable Productions in December.
The new season picks up after Annie and Auggie finally acknowledge their romantic feelings, and things get complicated when Annie aligns with Henry Wilcox (Gregory Itzin) in a dangerous mission involving Arthur (Gallagher) and Auggie.
Harper, also a best-selling author, is repped by Innovative, Luber Roklin and Carlos Goodman at Bloom Hergott.
Lesley Goldberg contributed to this report.
E-mail: Philiana.Ng@thr.com
Twitter: @insidethetube
