The GCPD has a new savior, and his name is… Vic Mackey?!

Gotham is returning Michael Chiklis to his Shield roots, casting the Emmy winner in the series-regular role of Captain Nathaniel Barnes, TVLine has learned exclusively.

Who’s Barnes, exactly? Per Gotham‘s producers, he “lands on the GCPD like a tornado, ripping out the dead wood of Gotham’s police force. He is a law and order zealot; unafraid of making enemies – on either side of the law. For Gordon (Ben McKenzie), Barnes is a hero and a mentor, someone with whom he can share the burden of heroism. Captain Barnes proves himself to be a strong ally to Gordon… but one day he will make an equally powerful enemy.”

Gordon could certainly use an ally right about now. At Comic-Con earlier this month, exec producer Bruno Heller billed Season 2 as “the rise of the villains,” a development that will cause the titular city to “decline into chaos.” Added McKenzie: “As the villains rise, there’s an arms race, and the good guys have to increase their force as well. There’ll be new heroes introduced.”

Chiklis most recently starred in American Horror Story: Freak Show.

Gotham kicks off its second season on Monday, Sept. 21 at 8/7c on Fox.