Elementary Season 5: True Blood's Nelsan Ellis to Play Shinwell Johnson

True Blood‘s Nelsan Ellis is sinking his teeth into a role 100 years in the making.

The actor is joining Elementary Season 5 for a three-episode arc as Shinwell Johnson, a character who first appeared in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1924 story, “The Illustrious Client.”

RELATEDFall TV 2016: Your Handy Calendar of 90+ Season and Series Premiere Dates

sherlock__shinwell_johnson_by_roberthack-d3eniy8
sherlock__shinwell_johnson_by_roberthack-d3eniy8

Elementary

’s modern take sees Shinwell as a former drug dealer who’s struggling to get his life back on track after a long stint in prison. A surgical patient of Watson’s (Lucy Liu) more than a decade ago, Shinwell reappears in her life as a helpful tipster in a murder investigation. He begins working with Sherlock and Joan, leveraging various illicit connections from his past to help the pair solve cases. But the more time he spends navigating New York’s underworld, the closer he gets to sliding back into the life he’s so desperate to leave behind.

PHOTOSFall TV’s First Scoops: A Grey’s Baby, Vampire Diaries‘ New Big Bad and More Early Intel From 18 Returning Series

Ellis will debut as Shinwell in Elementary‘s Season 5 premiere on Sunday, Oct. 2 at 10/9c.

Launch Gallery: Exclusive Comic-Con Portraits From Favorite Shows

Related stories

Amy Acker Spies MacGyver Role

Stephen Colbert Introduces Identical Twin Cousin of Colbert Report Persona

MacGyver Reboot Adds Vampire Diaries' Tristin Mays as Series Regular

Get more from TVLine: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter