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There is no more David E. Kelley, but there is an ex-mafia guy on ABC's new series "Life on Mars."

Michael Imperioli, who played Christopher Moltisanti in the hit HBO series "The Sopranos," has joined the cast of "Life on Mars" as Detective Ray Carling, a man who feels that the present-day cop-trapped-in-the-1970s Sam Tyler (Jason O'Mara) took a job that was supposed to be his.

The show, which is based on a BBC series that starred "Doctor Who's" John Simm, also stars Rachelle Lefevre and "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's" Colm Meaney.

The original pilot, which if shown will probably contain some reshoots and re-editing, was directed by Kelley -- best known for "Ally McBeal" and "Boston Legal" -- but it will not be run by Josh Appelbaum, Andre Nemec and Scott Rosenberg, who worked together in "October Road." At the same time, shooting has moved from Los Angeles to New York, which may have helped make Imperioli -- a New York native -- become available for the show.

This would be a first genre project for Imperioli who won an Emmy in 2004 for his work on "The Sopranos." He's also a popular screenwriter (a bit similar to his Moltisanti character on the HBO show), writing five episodes of "The Sopranos."

"Life On Mars" is expected to air Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET following "Grey's Anatomy."

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