EXCLUSIVE: Nico Tortorella (Younger) has been tapped for a lead role in the upcoming third series in The Walking Dead franchise on AMC.

Nico’s character, Felix, is described as an honorable man of his word who isn’t afraid to fight for others’ safety and acceptance.

The untitled third series will focus on the first generation to come of age in the apocalypse as we know it. Some will become heroes. Some will become villains. In the end, all of them will be changed forever.

The casting won’t interfere with Tortorella’s series regular role on Darren Star’s hit TV Land comedy series Younger, which was recently renewed for a seventh season with Tortorella set to continue as Josh.

On the new Walking Dead series, which has started production in and around Richmond, VA, Tortorella joins previously cast Annet Mahendru (Huck) and Aliyah Royale (Iris) join Alexa Mansour (Hope), Nicolas Cantu (Elton) and Hal Cumpston (Silas

Produced and distributed by AMC Studios, the series will premiere on AMC in spring 2020. Jordan Vogt-Roberts will direct the series co-created by Scott Gimple and The Walking Dead veteran writer and producer Matt Negrete, who will serve as the series’ showrunner.

Tortorella starred as Lyle Menendez in the Lifetime telefilm Menendez: Blood Brothers. Their TV series credits also include The Following and The Beautiful Life.

Tortorella, a staunch LGBTQIA+ advocate who identifies as non-binary, is also an author who released a poetry book, all of it is you, last year. A second book, a memoir titled Space Between, will be released on September 17. Tortorella is repped by Gersh and Management 360.