If there's one thing the CW's updated 90210 series needs, it's an old fashioned bad boy. They may have taken a while to introduce him to the show, but 90210 producers have finally found their new Dylan McKay in Matt Lanter, who is set to play troublemaker Liam when the series returns in January.

Already, the 90210 set is abuzz with excitement over the new addition. 90210 star AnnaLynne McCord, who plays Naomi, spilled about the Dylan comparisons earlier this week to "Access Hollywood."

“They're kind of welcoming him as the new Dylan,” said McCord.

AnnaLynne should have more than a little curiosity about the character, since he will also be Naomi's new flame this spring.

“He's my love interest, which is about time, because Naomi has been seriously lacking in that area!” McCord said. “They're throwing me a bone! It's about time!”

McCord went on to predict that Lanter's “sexy” character will “amp up the show a little bit.” Adding, “He's definitely what Naomi's been needing. I think it's going to be… I think it's going to be hot!”

You may remember Lanter, 25, as bad-touching bad boy Brody Mitchum opposite Claire (Hayden Panettiere) in the first season of Heroes, and more recently as Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars series. Lanter also competed in Bravo's Manhunt: The Search for America's Most Gorgeous Male Model.

Watch out for Lanter shaking things up on 90210 after the CW teen drama returns with new episodes on January 6. The character Liam is set to first appear sometime in February.

90210 viewers may be in for more surprises, too: as for the return of Tori Spelling as Donna Martin from the original 90210 series, AnnaLynne exclaimed, “I certainly hope so! I would welcome that.”



-Meghan Carlson, BuddyTV Staff Writer
Source: NBC News
(Images courtesy of ABC and the CW)