Stephen King to Cameo on ‘Under the Dome’ Season 2 on CBS (+Premiere Date)

Angie McAlister (Britt Robertson) waits on 'Under the Dome' author Stephen King, who makes a cameo in the second season's first episode, which he wrote. Phil Bushey (Nicholas Strong) stands behind King, with Junior Rennie (Alexander Koch) to the right. (Brownie Harris/CBS)

“Under the Dome” season 2 on CBS will feature a cameo from Stephen King, the author of the book that the series is based on.

Season 1 was the match-watched scripted summer series in 21 years, averaging 15.1 million viewers.

King wrote season 2, episode 1, titled “Heads Will Roll,” and will appear in the diner in Chester Mill, whose residents are trapped under a clear dome.

“It was fantastic to work directly with Stephen. He’s been a real hero of mine and now I get to work with him,” executive producer Neal Baer told USA Today. In the cameo, the author, who has made brief appearances in other adapted works, “is just a citizen of Chester’s Mill for at least the moment.”

“He often does little cameos, a la Hitchcock, in his films, so we thought that would be really cool if he did it again.”

Season 2 will premiere on June 30 at 10 p.m. EDT.

Baer also revealed that two major characters will die in episode 1, but the series is also adding cast members.

Additions include Sam Verdreaux (Eddie Cahill), a reclusive man who is the brother-in-law of Big Jim Rennie; Rebecca Pine (Karla Crome), a teacher who works with Big Jim and brings a scientific perspective; and Melanie (Grace Victoria Cox), a character pulled from the lake by Julia Shumway just after she throws the mysterious egg into the water at the end of the first-season finale.