'Mad Men' star Christina Hendricks to return to NBC's 'Life'

Attention Joan Holloway fans: The brassy redheaded secretary with the heart of, well, brass plans to cheat on her fellow Sterling Cooper secretaries by once again appearing as Charlie Crews’ future stepmother on the second season of Zen-cop procedural Life. After a two-episode spot on the NBC show last season, Christina Hendricks will return for an arc that continues her illicit burgeoning romance with Ted Earley (Adam Arkin) — Crews’ prison buddy, financial advisor, and current roommate.

“Everybody loves her,” says Life creator Rand Ravich of the actress — though no one’s expounding on where her role might go. Of course, the fact that her character, Olivia, is currently engaged to Crews’ father doesn’t necessarily spell happiness for Arkin’s character. But he’s not giving up on love: According to Arkin, around the seventh episode, Ted will start asking, “‘When? When is this happening? Why has it been such a long engagement? What’s going on?’ So who knows? It’s pretty hard to get a read on what Rand’s future plans are gonna be.”