James Van Der Beek Scrubs In to Mercy

James Van Der Beek has snagged a major recurring role on Mercy, TVGuide.com has confirmed.

See photos of James Van Der Beek

The erstwhile Dawson Leery will play Dr. Liam West, the new womanizing ICU chief who harbors a dark secret. The role could become a regular gig for the 32-year-old actor.Van Der Beek starts filming this week — with a slightly different look. "My prediction for 2010: NBC's "Mercy" will have a new Dr. who looks suspiciously like me, but with darker hair. Just a hunch," the star tweeted.

James Van Der Beek on his new holiday film

Since Dawson's Creek wrapped in 2003, Van Derk Beek has made memorable small-screen appearances on Criminal Minds, How I Met Your Mother and One Tree Hill. Most recently, he starred in the miniseries The Storm and in the Hallmark TV movie Debbie Macomber's Mrs. Miracle.