Claire Danes has officially signed on in the lead role of Showtime pilot Homeland, the network announced Thursday.

The actress, who recently won an Emmy for HBO's Temple Grandin, centers on an American solder taken captive during an invasion in Iraq in 2003, but returns to the U.S. after years in hiding. Danes will play Carrie Anderson, a driven CIA officer fighting psychological demons and is convinced the intelligence that led to a soldier's recapture was a setup.

Homeland comes from Howard Gordon (24), who serves as executive producer along with Alex Gansa (24, The X-Files), and is loosely based on the Israeli television series Prisoners of War by Gideon Raff.

Dexter's Michael Cuesta will direct. Gordon, Gansa and Raff wrote the pilot for the Fox 21 production.

The project, the first from Showtime president David Nevins, will begin production in January. An announcement for the other lead, Sergeant Scott Brody, will be made shortly.

Danes' last series television role was in ABC's Golden Globe-winning My So-Called Life.