Former Waterloo Road star Naveed Choudhry is set to join the cast of Hollyoaks as part of Ste Hay's radicalisation storyline.
Viewers will know that last month Jonny Baxter (Ray Quinn) and his dangerous far-right associates subjected Shahid Shirani (Alex Williams) to a sickening racist attack while Ste (Kieron Richardson) was unaware of the incident.
Naveed has joined the cast as guest character Amir Shirani, Shahid's brother, who will make his debut as the soap revisits Shahid's shocking assault next week.
Upcoming episodes will see Shahid return to screens as he delivers food to the Lomax flat, only to recognise Jonny in the living room when Ste answers the door.
Shahid demands answers over the attack and explains the effect it's had on him and his family, but when he later fears he's in danger, he accidentally pushes Jonny over and injures him.
Stuart Sumner (Chris Simmons) then fabricates the series of events between Shahid and Jonny, and warns Ste that their families could be in danger due to a threatening gang that Shahid is a part of.
Later, they decide to purposefully order a takeaway from Shahid and his brother Amir's family-run food business, and when Amir arrives with their order, Stuart, Ste and the extremist group decide to "teach him a lesson".
Speaking of his new role, Naveed said: "It's great to be involved in such an iconic show such as Hollyoaks. I've watched the show since I was young so to be acting in it has been a dream.
"I've enjoyed getting my teeth into the challenging storyline – the subject matter is very relevant and I'm keen to see the response when it airs.
"I have been fortunate enough to have worked with some of the cast members previously, so in many ways being on set has felt quite familiar. There's a great sense of trust and camaraderie among the team, it felt like working within one big family."
Hollyoaks bosses have previously confirmed that Ste will be radicalised into far-right extremism this year, as Jonny and Stuart Sumner slowly and subtly draw him into their group.
The show has been working with expert organisations and the Home Office while developing the storyline.
As well as Waterloo Road, where he was known for playing Tariq Siddiqui, Naveed has also made appearances in Casualty, Doctors and Silent Witness.
Naveed's first scenes in Hollyoaks will air on Thursday, April 25 at 7pm on E4, and on Friday, April 16 at 6.30pm on Channel 4.
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