Xzibit Moves Up to Series Regular on ‘Empire’

Congratulations to Xzibit! X-to-the-Z has moved up to a series regular position on FOX's hit show, Empire. The 41-year-old made his debut appearance towards the end of season two as Shyne Johnson, Lucious' rival -- and likely the new antagonist for the show as he ruined the wedding between Hakeem and his boo, Laura.

The news doesn't come as much of a surprise. Last month, Empire's showrunner told TVLine that Xzibit would be a "central character" in the drama next season.

In an interview with EW.com, the show's EP, Ilene Chaiken, also gave some insider information on Xzibit's character.

"Shyne isn’t necessarily an adversary, although I think he could become an adversary," she said. "Lucious has a long history with him — history that’s going to come back and bite Lucious for a lot of earlier slights,” she continued. "If you have a guy who’s not afraid to die, not afraid to go to prison, that’s a very dangerous adversary."

This is hardly the first time that Xzibit will act onscreen. He's appeared on TV shows such as CSI: Miami and Hawaii Five-0, and in films like xXx: State of the Union, Derailed and Gridiron Gang. And lest we forget his time on MTV's Pimp My Ride. However, Empire will be the first time that the Xzibit will star as a series regular on a scripted series. On top of that, the Detroit native has two movies on the way--including an animated film, Guardians of Luna, where he'll serve as a voice actor and a comedy/drama Sun Dogs.

Empire's Season 3 is slated to begin on Sept. 21.

What do you think Xzibit's Shyne Johnson will have in store for Lucious? Let us know in the comments below.