James Van Der Beek will continue to call CBS home.
The actor, who last season starred in the network's short-lived comedy Friends With Better Lives, has nabbed a series regular role in CSI: Cyber, CBS announced Wednesday.
The CSI: Crime Scene Investigation spinoff centers on special agent Avery Ryan (Patricia Arquette) who heads the Cyber Crime Division of the FBI, a unit at the forefront of solving illegal activities that start in the mind, live online and play out in the real world. Peter MacNicol and Charley Koontz star.
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Van Der Beek will play FBI Agent Elijah Mundo, an expert in battlefield forensics recruited by special agent Avery Ryan for his war efforts in Afghanistan. Mundo is a savant when it comes to weaponry, vehicles and bombs. A self-proclaimed action junkie, Mundo will often put himself at risk to seek permanent justice, while Ryan will level his die-hard behavior with her expertise in psychology. Together, they will team up to fight the world's toughest cyber crimes, both foreign and domestic.
The casting marks Van Der Beek's return to drama after comedic roles in Friends With Better Lives, recurring guest roles on CBS' How I Met Your Mother and ABC's Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23. He's best known for his breakout role as Dawson Leery on Dawson's Creek, with credits that include Mercy and features Varsity Blues, Rules of Attraction and more.
The CSI spinoff, which is inspired by cyber-psychologist Mary Aiken's work, hails from CSI creators Anthony E. Zuiker, Carol Mendelsohn and Ann Donahue. The trio will pen the script for the CBS Television Studios drama and executive produce alongside Bruckheimer Television's Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman. Aiken will receive a producer credit.
Van Der Beek is repped by Paradigm, Brillstein Entertainment and Jackoway Tyerman. CSI: Cyber premieres Sundays midseason on CBS.
Email: Lesley.Goldberg@THR.com
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