The Second Coming of Sydney Andrews

The CW’s reboot of Melrose Place, which everyone with a TV set expects will be on schedule this fall, has selected Ashlee Simpson to move into the complex as Violet, a calculating, shrewd sex kitten trapped in the hot body of a disarming small-town girl.

Yep – sounds like someone will be channeling Laura Leighton’s infamous Sydney Andrews. And I kind of love it.

Simpson joins a cast that so far includes Katie Cassidy (as ambitious publicist Ella), Michael Rady (as aspiring filmmaker Jonah), and maybe, just maybe, original-flavor Melrose Place‘s Heather Locklear, who would be mini-skirting around as Amanda Woodward.

“Both sides are talking,” it has been reported. “It’s looking good.”

Now, that I totally love.

Photo: Oumwashtenaw.org.

Update: My bad: It’s Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, thankyouverymuch.