Syfy’s space thriller “Ascension” has added one of the cast members of “Cougar Town.” EW.com’s Inside TV reports that the Syfy show has cast Brian Van Holt as the captain of a starship with a mission to populate a new world.

The limited series also stars Tricia Helfer of “Battlestar Galactica.”

Van Holt’s role is Captain William Denninger, described as “a natural leader, a military man and politician … strong-willed and confident,” while Helfer will play his wife, Viondra. The pair have a “tortured marriage,” the story adds.

The starship was secretly launched in 1963, and the events take place about 50 years into the craft’s journey.

Brian Van Holt