The 41-year-old actor joins Fox's action drama in the third season, replacing former star Clayne Crawford.
Seann WIlliam Scott is gearing up to co-pilot Lethal Weapon with Damon Wayans.
In the third season of Fox's action drama, the American Pie star takes over for former lead Clayne Crawford -- who was fired in May after being reprimanded twice for on-set behavior -- playing Wesley Cole, a former CIA special ops guy and war veteran who returns to Los Angeles to be closer to his ex-girlfriend, ER surgeon Natalie (Psych's Maggie Lawson), and young daughter, and eventually becomes Murtaugh's new partner.
Known primarily for playing men in various forms of arrested development, Scott steps into new shoes on Lethal Weapon -- and he's more than ready to show a different side of himself.
"This character is totally different [from past roles]. He's funny, but he's intelligent," Scott, 41, told ET earlier this year, adding he's "never played a smart guy before." "Anybody who's hoping that I'll be funny on the show, they won't be disappointed, but it's just a different kind [of humor]. Also there's a lot of physicality to the part and it's just totally different."
For one thing, Cole is a father -- something Scott's past characters like Stifler in the American Pie franchise or Wheeler in Role Models couldn't have even comprehended. "They're not typically the ones who are responsible and settle down," he said with a laugh.
Scott joined Lethal Weapon under less-than-ideal circumstances following Crawford's firing, and he admitted to feeling nerves stepping onto a show that was dealing with behind-the-scenes drama and the high expectations that come with being a replacement.
"I'm always nervous," he acknowledged. "Every project that I do, I always put a lot of pressure on myself and also I love the show. I've never done something where I was a fan of it before and all of a sudden, I get to be a part of it. Being a fan of the show and knowing there are a lot of fans and this is a real big change, I really want to do a good job and not let anyone down. That's pretty much been my mindset the whole time."
But Scott was optimistic that his on-set chemistry with Wayans, whose Murtaugh will be dealing with Riggs' absence in a realistic way, will keep viewers coming back for more this season.
"One of the things that I think is so special is how the two characters meet," he said of Cole and Murtaugh's meet-cute in the first episode, which he describes as "big," "fun" and "awesome." "They're very different but ... you have to watch it. It's cool."
He shared that it's been a blast working with Wayans on set so far. "We hang out all the time on set and he's always making me laugh. It's been so much fun to hang out with him and work with him," Scott said. "The first time we met was in Matt Miller's office, who is the creator of the show, and immediately we started to laugh and we could tell we were going to have a ball."
As for what fans can expect, Scott hinted viewers will see his character go through some intense fight scenes, something he says he hasn't done a lot in his career.
"Let's just say that my character might fight a bit," he said. "There are a lot of things with this project that I'm getting a chance to do that I never had a chance to do before."
Lethal Weapon premieres Tuesday, Sept. 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Fox.
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