Chris Diamantopoulos joins '24' next season

[Shaft]

According to my watch, it's time for the second piece of casting on 24's eighth season!

Chris Diamantopoulos -- best known as Debra Messing's gay BFF on The Starter Wife -- has been tapped to play the series regular role of Rob Weiss, the argumentative and tough new Chief of Staff to President Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones). He replaces Taylor's current C.O.S., Ethan Kanin, who snatched his job back in last Monday's finale after the prez's psycho daughter, Olivia, was taken into federal custody.

As I previously reported, Day 8's action will switch from Washington D.C. to New York City and center on an assassination plot against a visiting foreign leader (Slumdog Millionaire's Anil Kapoor, the new season's first piece of casting).

Bonus piece of trivia free of charge: Diamantopoulos is married to Ugly Betty's sublime Becki Newton. On second thought, that little nugget is worth at least $50. Pay up.