EXCLUSIVE: Nick Zano is joining the cast of the CW’s superhero drama series DC’S Legends of Tomorrow as a new series regular for Season 2. He will play Dr. Nate Heywood, a historian whose grandfather was Commander Steel, a member of the Justice Society of America.

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In the comics, Nate becomes Steel/Citizen Steel, a former member of the Justice League of America. The producers of the CW series are being ambiguous whether Nate will walk in his grandfather’s super heroic footsteps but, given the superhero nature of the show, that appears almost certain.

The original Steel comic book character Henry Heywood/Commander Steel was introduced back in 1978. He should not be confused with a better known DC character, John Henry Irons, who became a Superman-influenced character calling himself Steel after the famous Death of Superman storyline in the early 90s.

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Following the original Commander Steel, the WWII-set Henry Heywood, the second Steel, his grandson Hank Heywood III, was introduced in 1984 as s a member of the Justice League who was eventually killed off. That led to Nate, the third Steel, introduced in 2007 and also a grandson of the original. In the comics, Nate is a former college football star who shattered his knee and became addicted to painkillers. Later on, he was turned into a being made of “living steel” who didn’t want to be known as Commander Steel, so he’s referred to as Citizen Steel.

In DC’s New 52 reboot back in 2011, the Heywood family were relegated to Earth 2, which was introduced in the second season of the CW’s The Flash, playing a big role in that season’s plotline.

Nate Heywood is one of two new series regular roles the WBTV-produced DC’s Legends of Tomorrow is adding for Season 2 after bidding farewell to Season 1 regular Ciara Renée in the finale, while another regular cast member, Wentworth Miller, will become recurring as he will appear on both The Flash and Legends next season. In Season 2, “the composition of the team is going to change; there will be some new faces on the Waverider,” Legends co-creator/executive producer Marc Guggenheim said last month. “The season finale planted some very significant flags in terms of what the new concept of the show will be in season 2. The team’s mission statement for Season 2 is more compelling than Season 1, and at the same time, it is more streamlined. It’s a little bit higher concept, a very clean notion that will allow the show to do things that it does best.”

Zano most recently starred on Fox’s sci-fi drama Minority Report. This marks his return to the CW where he had roles on Melrose Place and 90210. He is repped by UTA and manager John Carrabino.

Ross Lincoln contributed to this report.