Tony Winner Cicely Tyson Headed to ABC's HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER

ABC's HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER has booked a Tony winner.

According to Deadline, Cicey Tyson, who recently starred in A TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL on Broadway, has signed on for a guest starring role on the network's hit freshman drama.

No details on Tyson's character have been announced, but she's slated to appear on one episode during the first season of before it wraps.

Annalise Keating (Academy-Award Nominee Viola Davis) is everything you hope your Criminal Law professor will be - brilliant, passionate, creative and charismatic. She's also everything you don't expect - sexy, glamorous, unpredictable and dangerous. As fearless in the courtroom as she is in the classroom, Annalise is a defense attorney who represents the most hardened, violent criminals - people who've committed everything from fraud to arson to murder - and she'll do almost anything to win their freedom. On the surface, Annalise seems like she has it all - a successful career and loving husband, Sam (Tom Verica) - but her relationship with a local Philadelphia detective, Nate (Billy Brown), will force her to confront secrets about her life she never saw coming.

"How to Get Away with Murder" stars Academy-Award Nominee Viola Davis as Professor Annalise Keating, Billy Brown as Nate, Alfred Enoch as Wes Gibbins, Jack Falahee as Connor Walsh, Katie Findlay as Rebecca, Aja Naomi King as Michaela Pratt, Matt McGorry as Asher Millstone, Karla Souza as Laurel Castillo, Charlie Weber as Frank Delfino and Liza Weil as Bonnie Winterbottom.

"How to Get Away with Murder" is created and executive-produced by Pete Nowalk ("Scandal," "Grey's Anatomy"). Shonda Rhimes ("Scandal," "Grey's Anatomy"), Betsy Beers ("Scandal," "Grey's Anatomy") and Bill D'Elia ("Grey's Anatomy," "The West Wing") also serve as executive producers. "How to Get Away with Murder" is produced by ABC Studios.

Tyson is a celebrated American actress whose work in film, television and on the Broadway stage has spanned seven decades. She earned Best Actress nominations from both the Academy and the Golden Globes® for her performance as Rebecca Morgan in SOUNDER (1972) - a film recognized by the American Film Institute as one of the most inspiring films of all time. Tyson went on to win two Primetime Emmy® Awards for THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MISS JANE PITTMAN (1974), and another for OLDEST LIVING CONFEDERATE WIDOW TELLS ALL (1994). She has been nominated for the award six more times, for such unforgettable performances in ROOTS (1977), KING (1978), THE MARVA COLLINS STORY (1982), SWEET JUSTICE (1994-1995), A LESSON BEFORE DYING (1999) and RELATIVE STRANGER (2009). She has appeared in eight Broadway plays - most recently starring in "The Trip to Bountiful," for which she received the Tony® Award for Best Actress in 2013. In addition to her stage work, Tyson has remained active in film with memorable roles in THE HELP (2011) and FRIED GREEN TOMATOES (1991) - the latter of which was directed by Jon Avnet (AFI Class of 1972), an AFI Honorary Degree recipient last year.

Photo by Walter McBride

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