‘Angel’ Alum Joining Buzzed-About Pilot S.H.I.E.L.D.

One of the most buzzed-about pilots of this upcoming TV season – S.H.I.E.L.D. (also being touted as Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) – which is being directed (and co-written) by none other than Joss Whedon himself, has just added another cast member: ‘Angel’ alum J. August Richards

According to a report at Entertainment Weekly, Richards will be playing, well, that reveal is being kept a closely-guarded secret much like the series itself.

What is known is that the pilot will revolve around members of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, otherwise known as S.H.I.E.L.D. in the Marvel Universe; and the cast will include actor Clark Gregg will is reprising his role of Phil Coulson from the box office films ‘The Avengers’, ‘Thor’, ‘Iron Man’ (etc.) as well actress Ming-Na (‘Stargate Universe’ and ‘Eureka’), newcomer Brett Dalton, actress Elizabeth Henstridge (‘Hollyoaks’), actor Ian De Caestecker (‘The Fades’) and actresses Shannon Lucio and Chloe Bennet (‘Nashville’).

Among Richards other credits are the short-lived shows ‘Conviction’ and ‘Raising the Bar’ as well as recent guest spots on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’, ‘Emily Owens, M.D.’, ‘The Mentalist’ and ‘Warehouse 13’.

No official word has been announced on whether ABC will pick up the pilot to series, but the network’s entertainment President Paul Lee showed confidence in the show back in January, sharing that the series is “a big franchise for us” and speculating that it “could go anywhere” on the network’s schedule. The official fall line-up for ABC will bemade mid-May at the annual upfront presentations in New York.