Annabeth Gish will join the cast of The X-Files as a new FBI agent in a three-episode arc this season, with an option to return in the fall as a regular, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Gish will play an as-yet-unnamed character in the FBI's New Orleans office, where she has been working with reports of satanic cults.

Gish's character has a personal history with Robert Patrick's character, Agent John Doggett, and both characters will be teaming up. Gish's first episode will air Feb. 25, when she joins the hunt for the missing Agent Fox Mulder, played by David Duchovny (duh), who makes yet another small appearance for the season.

If the show returns for a ninth season, Gish will become a regular, but she will not be replacing anybody, said X-Files creator Chris. "It seems to me that we have benefited from the addition of Robert Patrick to the cast, and we're hoping that we can expand the cast even further and as successfully with Annabeth," he said.

Patrick and co-star Gillian Anderson (Dana Scully) are contracted for the ninth season of the show. Carter is in preliminary talks about coming back next season. Duchovny's X-Files future however, is still not clear.