Lord of the Rings actor Sean Astin has joined the new FX vampire pilot the Strain.

The Strain is executive produced by Carlton Cuse, who tweeted the new about Astin’s role on Tuesday.  The pilot is directed by Guillermo del Toro (Pacific Rim, Pan’s Labyrinth) and is based on a trilogy of novels he co-wrote with Chuck Hogan, according to Entertainment Weekly.  The cast also includes Corey Stoll, Kevin Durand, Mia Maestro, Richard Sammel, Lauren Lee Smith, Jonathan Hyde, Miguel Gomez and John Hurt.

The official description for the show reads, “The Strain is a high concept thriller that tells the story of Dr. Ephraim Goodweather (Stoll), the head of the Center for Disease Control Canary Team in New York City. He and his team are called upon to investigate a mysterious viral outbreak with hallmarks of an ancient and evil strain of vampirism. When Eph realizes that this isn’t some new bioterror weapon, but something much older, something outside the reach of science, he teams with Abraham (Hurt) to fight back. As a plague of hungry and intelligent predators overwhelms New York, Eph, Abraham and a motley crew of everyday New Yorkers form a ragtag resistance – fighting monsters in the streets and in their homes, waging a war for the fate of humanity itself.”

Astin has been cast as Jim Kent, whose official description says, “In FX’s drama series pilot the Strain, Sean Astin has been cast in the role of CDC team administrator ‘Jim Kent,’ the third member of the Canary Team triumvirate along with Ephraim Goodweather (Corey Stoll) and Nora Martinez (Mia Maestro) who are charged with solving and containing the mysterious strain of vampirism that is sweeping over Manhattan.”