Checking in with JASON PRIESTLEY

Never count out Jason Priestley — as an actor, a director or both. The “Beverly Hills, 90210” alumnus tends to resurface in series television when it’s not expected, and he’s doing that again in the new show “Wild Cards,” airing Wednesdays on the CW. He plays the incarcerated veteran-con-artist father of another swindler (Vanessa Morgan, “Riverdale”) who has teamed with a disgraced police detective (Giacomo Giannotti, “Grey’s Anatomy”) to merge their special talents for crime-solving. Priestley’s character is concerned about his daughter’s new arrangement, but that doesn’t keep him from giving her advice and help from behind prison bars when she needs it.

The new role lets Priestley incorporate the wry humor for which he’s been known ever since he played Brandon Walsh in “90210,” with that role allowing him to combine an earnestness with a mildly sarcastic take on the world. The part gave Priestley a decade-long run (1990-2000), before he played a variation of himself in “BH90210,” which had a brief run in the summer of 2019 and also featured the other principal members of the original cast in spins on their real-life images.

In Priestley’s case, his “BH90210” doppelganger was also a director, and that’s a job he started doing during his original “90210” days, ultimately helming 15 episodes of that show. He went on to direct installments of “Call Me Fitz,” “Private Eyes” and “Raising Expectations,” in which he also starred. Additionally, he called the shots in stints on such series as “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” “Haven,” “The Night Shift,” “Rookie Blue,” “Saving Hope” and “Van Helsing.”

Don’t be surprised to see a directing credit for Priestley in “Wild Cards” as it goes along, too. While such double duty isn’t necessarily a requirement for him on any show he acts in, it’s a nice bonus since he knows the series and its other makers know him — and he brings plenty of experience, as his longtime fans know well.

Birthdate: Aug. 28, 1969

Birthplace: Vancouver, B.C.

Current residence: Nashville, Tenn. Marital status:

Married; he has a daughter and a son

Movie credits include: “Zoom,” “Enter the Dangerous Mind,” “Going the Distance,” “Fancy Dancing,” “Time of the Wolf,” “Darkness Falling,” “The Fourth Angel,” “Double Down,” “Eye of the Beholder,” “The Thin Pink Line,” “Vanishing Point,” “Hacks,” “Love and Death on Long Island,” “Coldblooded,” “Tombstone,” “Calendar Girl,” “Nowhere to Run,” “Watchers,” “The Boy Who Could Fly” Other television credits include: “Beverly Hills, 90210,” “BH90210,” “Private Eyes,” “Call Me Fitz,” “Fantasy Island,” “Canada’s Got Talent,” “Dear Christmas,” “The Twilight Zone,” “Raising Expectations,” “Welcome to Sweden,” “Hot in Cleveland,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “How I Met Your Mother,” “Psych,” “Stephen King’s Bag of Bones,” “Haven,” “The Day of the Triffids,” “My Name Is Earl,” “Medium,” “Without a Trace,” “Love Monkey,” “What I Like About You,” “Tru Calling,” “8 Simple Rules,” “Jeremiah,” “Spin City,” “Common Ground,” “The Outer Limits,” “Saturday Night Live,” “Sister Kate,” “Quantum Leap,” “MacGyver,” “21 Jump Street,” “Airwolf ” Education: Argyle Secondary School, North Vancouver Music videos he has appeared in: Roy Orbison’s “I Drove All Night,” Britney Spears’ “Boys (The Co-Ed Remix)” Auto-racing teams he has co-owned: Rubicon Race Team, FAZZT Race Team