Emily Rose and Lucas Bryant star in “Haven”

Welcome, stranger: One of Syfy's most popular shows is coming back for a fifth season, and it's adding a Canadian sci-fi favorite to its already extensive cast.

"Haven" may look like a crime drama on the surface, but peel back that outer layer and you'll find it seething with the supernatural. Over its four seasons, it has built a sizeable and loyal fan base, and the addition of Laura Mennell to the cast is just one more reason to love it.

Season 5 premieres on Thursday, Sept. 11, on Syfy in the U.S., and it's set to pick up right where last season's dramatic cliffhanger left off.

Mennell may be a Canadian actress, but she'll be no stranger to American audiences. She starred in another Syfy drama, "Alphas," back in 2011 and 2012, and she had a recurring role in "Motive" on ABC. She played one of the titular haunts in 2001's hit film "Thir13en Ghosts," and popped up in 2009's dark super hero flick "Watchmen."

She'll be in good company in "Haven." Mennell will reportedly be playing an epidemiologist who's worried that Haven -- the sleepy little New England town where the show is set -- is at risk of a deadly outbreak.

She'll be joining an already stacked cast that includes a huge array of talent. Emily Rose ("ER"), Eric Balfour ("24"), Lucas Bryant ("The Vow," 2012), John Dunsworth ("Trailer Park Boys") and Richard Donat ("Blackfly") have all become favorites over the past four seasons, and with Mennell joining them on set, things may be about to get more interesting for the town.

"Haven" fans won't want to miss season 5's premiere Thursday, Sept. 11, on Syfy.

The golden touch: Everything the legendary Midas touched turned into gold, and it sometimes seems like executive producer Shonda Rhimes has the same power. Unlike the tragic king of folklore, Rhimes' golden touch is a good thing.

The "Grey's Anatomy" creator has her finger in yet another pie with her latest project, "How to Get Away With Murder," coming to ABC this fall, with a premiere set for Thursday, Sept. 25.

Lined up to headline the new drama is stage and screen actress Viola Davis. Davis has starred in many Hollywood hits, including "Solaris" (2002), "The Help" (2011), "Traffic" (2000), "Disturbia" (2007) and "Eat Pray Love" (2010). For her first starring role on TV, she'll be playing a criminal defense professor who gets mixed up in a murder plot that has the potential to entangle her students and even drag in the entire university.

"How to Get Away With Murder" hasn't even started to air yet, but it's already lined up its first guest star. Alysia Reiner has been a recurring character in the Netflix hit "Orange Is the New Black," and she'll be recurring here, too.

Other actors set to star in the legal thriller include Charlie Weber ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer"), Billy Brown ("Hostages"), Alfred Enoch ("Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," 2002), Jack Falahee ("Twisted") and Katie Findlay ("The Carrie Diaries").

"How to Get Away With Murder" joins two other Rhimes hits on ABC. "Grey's Anatomy" is still going strong since 2005, and "Scandal" is a political thriller with a twist. If the executive producer's golden touch holds true, "Murder" may well be her next big hit.

Shonda Rhimes fans won't want to miss the premiere of "How to Get Away with Murder" airing Thursday, Sept. 25, on ABC.

Androids amok: A beloved author's first motion picture is being turned into a TV series, and the caliber of actors it's attracting sure is turning some heads.

"Westworld" launched the late Michael Crichton's directing career, and the 1973 film helped catapult the author into popular consciousness. Now, that beloved science fiction work is being given the TV treatment by HBO.

The premium cable network has a reputation for quality programming, and with the actors who've signed up for "Westworld," it's looking like that reputation will continue to hold true. The latest actor to land a role is four-time Oscar nominee Ed Harris ("Pain & Gain," 2013, "A Beautiful Mind," 2001). His role sounds like it will be an especially dark one, being described as pure villainy distilled into the form of a single man.

As if such a respected screen actor playing such a dark role isn't enough to attract attention, the rest of the cast is just as good. Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins ("The Silence of the Lambs," 1991) will also be starring, along with Evan Rachel Wood ("Once and Again"), Jeffrey Wright ("Casino Royale," 2006) and James Marsden ("X-Men: Days of Future Past," 2014).

Much like the 1973 film, "Westworld" will explore the dawn of true artificial intelligence and the implications that it has for humanity and for the future of sin. "Westworld" is still in its early stages with no release date announced yet.