'Designated Survivor' Season 2 Plot News: Zoe McLellan Joins Cast; Maggie Q's Character Gets a Love Interest

By Faith Baquirquir, Christian Post Contributor Friday, July 21, 2017

ABC's hit drama series "Designated Survivor" will be seeing new faces next season.

It has been confirmed that "Suits" and "NCIS: New Orleans" star Zoe McLellan has been added to to the show as a series regular. She has been cast as Kendra Daynes, the new White House counsel. Her character is described to be a brilliant lawyer who has landed her dream job, advising the most influential man in the world.

This character is said to develop close relationships with the White House staff as she takes care of a plethora of legal issues.

Former "The Deep End" cast member Ben Lawson has also been added to the list of new characters appearing in "Designated Survivor" season 2, and she will be a new series regular.

As reported by Deadline, he will play an MI-6 operative named Damian Rennett, who meets Maggie Q's Hannah Wells while going undercover as a Dutchman in Amsterdam. They reportedly will be competitive with each other but will also have an "irresistible mutual attraction."

"Royal Pains"star Paulo Costanzo is also set to appear as a White House Political Director in the series' upcoming season.

According to TV Line, Kiefer Sutherland, who plays one of the lead roles in the show, said that the three new additions are "principal characters" who are set to "round out the complexities of running the White House" and allow the story to dig deeper into the lives of the show's main characters.

"Desgnated Survivor" returns for its second season this fall on ABC, without a specific premiere date yet. Apart from the mentioned actors, the series also stars Natascha McElhone, Adan Canto, Italia Ricci, Tanner Buchanan, and more.

Keith Eisner, the former "The Good Wife" executive producer, will be taking the mantle of Jeff Melvoin as the new showrunner.