Los Angeles, July 04: "The Sopranos" veteran Michael Imperioli is returning to series television as co-star of ABC`s new drama "Life on Mars."

Based on the BBC series, "Life" centers on Sam Tyler (Jason O`Mara), a modern-day police detective who, after a car crash, finds himself mysteriously transported back to the 1970s and still working as a detective.

Imperioli will play a colleague of Sam`s in 1972. He is a rough, tough sexist who has never heard the phrase "politically correct."

The casting of Imperioli is part of the revamping of the project after the departure of David E. Kelley, who penned the original pilot for ABC.

The series, which will be filmed in New York, is slated to air in the post-"Grey`s Anatomy" slot at 10 p.m. Thursdays in the fall.

In December, Imperioli starred in the network`s TV movie "Oprah Winfrey Presents: Mitch Albom`s for One More Day." He won an Emmy for his role as troubled mobster/aspiring filmmaker Christopher Moltisanti on HBO`s "Sopranos."

Bureau Report