Marvel has announced that Drea de Matteo will appear on an upcoming episode of "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." following the series' return from its current winter hiatus. The Emmy award-winning actress will play Karla Faye Gideon, described as a "gifted woman with a grudge to bear against S.H.I.E.L.D. who joins forces with Skye's father, Cal."

Gideon is a name that may not be familiar to even the most diehard of Marvel fans, but the character does come from the comics. Karla Faye Gideon appeared in the 2005 "Daredevil: Redemption" limited series by David Hine and Michael Gaydos as a victim of domestic violence and mother of a murdered child. Her decision to stand by her husband put her at odds with Daredevil over the course of the miniseries.

The description of de Matteo's character bears little resemblance to her non-superpowered namesake. Given the events of the midseason finale, which saw Skye undergoing a transformation into a super-powered Inhuman, the word "gifted" implies that de Matteo could be another Inhuman. Her association with Skye's father, Dr. Calvin Zabo, also raises a few Inhuman flags.

de Matteo most recently starred in FX's "Sons of Anarchy" as Wendy Case and was seen before that in the ABC primetime soap "Desperate Housewives." The actress won an Emmy award in 2004 for her role as Adriana La Cerva in HBO's "The Sopranos."

A number of other high profile guest stars will appear in the back half of "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s" second season. Jaimie Alexander is scheduled to reprise her role as Sif in an episode, while Luke Mitchell will play an Inhuman guide for Skye. Edward James Olmos and Blair Underwood are also set to play pivotal roles in the second half of season two.

"Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." returns to ABC on March 3.