'Forgotten' woman joins Zach Gilford in ABC's 'Matadors' pilot

Tis the season for actors in bubble shows to start making contingency plans.

Case in point, Michelle Borth has landed the female lead in ABC's drama pilot "The Matadors," just in case her current ABC drama series, "The Forgotten," isn't remembered by network programmers.

"Matadors," a Sony TV production, is being described as a Romeo-and-Juliet series set against a legal backdrop.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Borth ("Tell Me You Love Me") will play Juliana (subtle, we know), who works with her father in the state's attorney's office. She begins an affair with Alex (Zach Gilford), whose father runs an influential private law firm.

Obviously "Matadors" will be in second position behind "The Forgotten" for Borth, though "The Forgotten" isn't considered to be a likely renewal.

Also joining the "Matadors" pilot is Jonathan Scarfe ("Raising the Bar"), who will play the brother of Gilford's character.

Meanwhile, in other ABC casting news, six-time Emmy nominee Brian Dennehy is joining Dana Gould in the writer-comic's untitled sitcom pilot.

In the comedy pilot, Gould plays a high school guidance counselor raising two children. Dennehy will, as you might guess, play his father, a retired football coach.

Dennehy has most recently appeared on the small screen in episodes of "Rules of Engagement" and "30 Rock" and in the unlikely role of Kublai Khan in a "Marco Polo" telefilm.