Guess Who’s Coming to TV? 24+ Stars Making Special Appearances on Fall Shows (PHOTOS)

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Familiar-faces
Clockwise from left: Eric Liebowitz/NBC; Sarah Shatz/CBS; Jordin Althaus/NBC

Familiar Faces in Fresh Places

Fall TV Preview 2015 There’s no shortage of fun cameos this season as guest stars pop up in different shows, either for brief scenes or longer storylines. Some are pulling double duty by appearing on different shows, while others are taking a quick break from their own. See the stars who will be stopping by your favorite returning fall shows.

RELATED: 15 Fall Shows Ready to Make You Laugh | Fall Shows Preview Page

Dr. Ken - Ken Jeong and Margaret Cho
ABC/Ron Tom

Dr. Ken

Margaret Cho

Role:The stand-up comedienne and former All-American Girl stops by as Ken’s sister, Wendi, a successful doctor/host of a medical show on TV.

Airs:Fridays, 7:30/7:30c on ABC

Black-ish - Deon Cole and Amber Rose
ABC/John Fleenor

black-ish

Amber Rose

Role: The model and hip-hop artist (and wife of Wiz Khalifa) will appearing as Charlie’s (Deon Cole) former flame, Dominique.

Airs:Wednesdays, 9:30/8:30c on ABC

Adam Baldwin as Detective Slaughter holding his hands up Castle
Mitch Haaseth/ABC

Castle

Adam Baldwin

Role: Firefly fans will rejoice when Baldwin returns to Castle as Detective Ethan Slaughter, the cop with a quick temper and questionable morals.

Airs:Mondays, 10/9c on CBS

Guest Star Anthony Michael Hall with Russell Hodgkinson on Z Nation
Daniel Sawyer Schaefer/Go2 Z Ice/Syfy

Z Nation

A ton of stars are dropping by Syfy’s own zombie apocalypse series.

Anthony Michael Hall

Role: Hall, a vet of Awkward and Psych will play Gideon, a management trainer and the leader of a group of survivors from a corporate retreat-turned-cult.

Missi Pyle

Role: Most recently seen on Another Period, Pyle plays Bernadette, a distracted young woman who shows the Z Nation team a long-forgotten Air Force base.

Gina Gershon

Role: Currently on Amazon Prime’s Red Oaks, the actress will appear as La Reina (“The Queen”), the wild leader of the Zeroes.

Doug Jones

Role: The Falling Skies actor plays a New Mexico local named Scully who has a secret that will put Murphy in peril.

George R.R. Martin

Role: A zombie version of himself

Read More: Details about the casting news and characters

Airs: Fridays, 10/9c on Syfy

Elementary - John Noble
John Noble, now on Elementary. Credit: Jeff Neira /CBS

Elementary

John Noble

Role: Known for his roles in Sleepy Hollow and Fringe (where he played a different kind of dad), Noble will be appearing as Sherlock’s (Jonny Lee Miller) father, Morland.

Read More: Details about Noble’s casting

Airs: Thursdays, 10/9c on CBS

Gordon-Levitt-Dillahunt-Nayyar
Andrew Goodman/Getty Images; Jordin Althaus/NBC; J. Countess/Getty Images

The Mindy Project

Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Role: The HitRECord on TV host plays a Real Housewives producer and Mindy’s (Mindy Kaling) husband in the season premiere’s alternate reality storyline. Levitt will also be popping up on Todrick to collaborate with the YouTube star for a second time on a music video.

Garret Dilahunt

Role: Schulman & Associates will be hiring the Hand of God star’s old-fashioned, sexist (and slightly racist) doctor when Mindy goes on maternity leave this season.

Kunal Nayyar

Role: Raj Koothrappali takes a backseat as Nayyar drops his Big Bang Theory character to play Sendhil, a successful hedge fund manager who Mindy’s parents believe will make the perfect husband in an arranged marriage.

Airs: Tuesdays on Hulu
Keys-Ludacris-Tomei
Paul Morigi/WireImage; Paras Griffin/Getty Images; Jamie McCarthy/WireImage

Empire

An amazing who's who of musicians and guest stars will be stopping by the Empire studio during the second season. Here are the ones we know so far, along with some role descriptions.

Kelly Rowland

Role: The former Destiny’s Child singer will appear as Lucious Lyons’ (Terrence Howard) mom during the show’s second season flashbacks. First Look: Kelly Rowland on Empire

Marisa Tomei

Role: The Oscar winner for My Cousin Vinny will pop up as Mimi Whiteman, a lesbian venture capitalist (and billionaire) who wants to invest in Empire.

Other Guest Stars

  • Chris Rock – Former criminal partner from Lucious’s cast, and a fellow inmate
  • Ludacris – Corrections officer at Lucious’s prison
  • Adam Rodriguez – Potential love interest for Cookie
  • Vivica A. Fox – Cookie’s oldest sister on episode 8
  • Mariah Carey - Little is known about her role, but she won't appear as herself
  • Lenny Kravitz
  • Alicia Keys
Airs: Wednesdays, 9/8 on FOX
Williams-Kingston-01
Araya Diaz/Getty Images; Barry King/FilmMagic

Doctor Who

Maisie Williams

Role: Winterfell is coming to the TARDIS. Little is know about the character, but we do know the Game of Thrones star will be greeting Peter Capaldi’s Doctor as an old friend.

Alex Kingston

Role: As the Doctor's wife, River Song will return for the Christmas special later this year to meet her husband’s latest reincarnation for the first time.

Plus: 8 Things to Expect This Season

Airs: Saturdays, 9/8c on BBC America
Freeman-Albright
Sarah Shatz/CBS; JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images

Madam Secretary

Morgan Freeman

Role: Oscar winner and executive producer Freeman will step in front of the camera for the show’s second season premiere.

Madeleine Albright

Role: The former Secretary of State will be meeting with fictional politicians when she guest stars along with Freeman.

Airs: Mondays, 10/9c on ABC
Kesha-Spears
David Becker/Getty Images; Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

Jane the Virgin

Britney Spears

Role: Things will be getting toxic this season when the pop superstar plays herself and drives Rogelio de la Vega (Jaime Camil) crazy as his in-show nemesis.

Ke$ha

Role: The “TiK Tok” singer will be playing Jane’s next door neighbor, Annabelle, a musician who isn’t exactly “baby friendly.”

Airs: Mondays, 9/8c on The CW
Martindale-Morgan
Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic; Michael Tran/Getty Images

The Good Wife

Margo Martindale

Role: BoJack Horseman’s resident character actress will be joining the show as a top campaign operative. She will be working for Peter Florrick’s potential presidential campaign.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Role: The Supernatural actor will be hunting for leads (instead of demons) as the firm’s new investigator.

Airs: Sundays, 9/8 on CBS
Famke-Jansen
Mike Pont/FilmMagic

How to Get Away With Murder

Famke Janssen

Role: The X-Men actress will be joining the show for a multi-episode arc as (per speculation) a defense attorney who can go head-to-head with Annalise.

Airs: Thursdays, 10/9c on ABC
Shaquille-Oneal
Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

Fresh Off the Boat

Shaquille O’Neal

Role: Eddie Huang’s favorite basketball player will be making an appearance in the show’s third episode.

Airs: Tuesdays, 8:30/7:30c on ABC
WIlliam-Shatner
Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images

Haven

William Shatner

Role: The Star Trek star will be touching down in Haven, Maine, and his character will play a pivotal role with the potential to impact the fate of the town...and its Troubles.

Airs: Thursdays, 10/9c on Syfy
Joey-Lauren-Adams
Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

Grey’s Anatomy

Joey Lauren Adams

Role: Adams’s character will be vying for the same Chief of Surgery position as Dr. Bailey (Chandra Wilson), especially as Dr. Avery’s (Debbie Allen) favorite.

Airs: Thursdays, 8/7c, ABC
Tyra-Banks
Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

black-ish

Tyra Banks

Role: When she’s not hosting FABLife and judging America’s Next Top Model, Banks will play a version of herself—but one who's also Dre’s best friend.

Airs: Wednesdays, 9:30/8:30c on ABC
Brooklyn Nine-Nine - Joe Lo Truglio as Detective Charles Boyle and Archie Panjabi as Lieutenant Thakurta
Eddy Chen/Fox

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Archie Panjabi

Role: The former Good Wife actress picks up a badge and gun for her turn as Lieutenant Thakurta, a Staten Island cop looking to romance Detective Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio). Boyle will also get another admirer in the form of 24‘s Mary Lynn Rajskub.

First Look: Archie Punjabi Gets Flirty on Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Airs: Sundays, 8:30/7:30c on FOX

Paul Reubens as Mr. Vargas in The Blacklist
Eric Liebowitz/NBC

The Blacklist

Paul Reubens

Role: The former Pee-Wee Herman portrayer will reprise his role as Mr. Vargas in multiple episodes.

Airs: Thursdays, 9/8c on NBC

Steven Tyler and Hayden Panettiere in Nashville
Mark Levine/ABC

Nashville

Steven Tyler

Role: You won’t want to miss a thing when the Aerosmith frontman makes his appearance on the country music soap.

Airs: Wednesdays, 10/9c on ABC

Bones - Emily Deschanel and guest star Betty White in the episode, The Carpals in the Coy-Wolves
FOX

Bones

Betty White

Role: The Jeffersonian will be getting another squintern in the form of Dr. Beth Mayer, one of the world’s most experienced forensic anthropologists. (Brennan, of course, will not be happy.)

Airs: Thursdays, 8/7c, FOX

Emily Osment
Steve Granitz/WireImage

Mom

Emily Osment

Role: The Young and Hungry actress will appear on multiple episodes as a streetwise drug addict who Christie (Anna Faris) and Bonnie (Allison Janney) try to help get sober.

Ellen Burstyn

Role: The legendary actress will stop by the show as Bonnie’s (Allison Janney) birth mother in the Season 3 premiere.

Read More: Details about Burstyn’s casting

Airs: Thursdays, 9/8c on CBS

Matt-Ryan
Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

Arrow

Matt Ryan

Role: NBC may have cancelled Constantine, but Ryan’s character will be briefly resurrected for a guest appearance on Season 4 of Arrow—presumably to share his knowledge of the Lazarus Pit.

Read More: Matt Ryan's Magical Return to Arrow

Airs: Wednesdays, 9/8c on The CW
Kelly Rowan
George Pimentel/Getty Images

Castle

Kelly Rowan

Role: The O.C. star will play an university dean dealing with the death of a student.

Airs: Mondays, 10/9c on ABC

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