Jeffrey Dean Morgan will be a series regular on The Good Wife when it returns for its seventh season.
The critically acclaimed CBS legal drama adds Morgan as the series lost Archie Panjabi at the end of the sixth season. Morgan will play Alex a calm, experienced hourly investigator that Alicia, played by Julianna Margulies, hires, according to the press release. The fan favorite Panjabi also played an investigator and her exit left a gap that Morgan’s character will help fill.
“We’ve loved and admired Jeffrey Dean Morgan for years, and we were thrilled to hear that Julianna did too, so it was a no-brainer to ask him to join our troupe,” said executive producers Robert and Michelle King in the press release.
In other Good Wife news, Matthew Goode, who played an attorney on the show, also exited after season six. Also joining the show in season seven is Cush Jumbo (Torchwood) but her recurring role remains unknown though she could also be helping to close the gap left by Panjabi’s exit, according to TVGuide.
“I wouldn’t say she’s replacing Archie because she’s irreplaceable, but we wanted someone who could fill that same interesting dynamic on the show without doing the same thing,” Robert King told TVGuide. Michelle King added, “We’re still figure out exactly [her role], but we’re not suggesting that Cush will be an investigator or take on that role.”
Morgan is currently starring in the CBS show Extant.
The Good Wife returns to CBS on October 4.