School is nearly back in session & hunk Josh Segarra will be heating up the halls of ‘Abbott Elementary’

School is nearly back in session at Abbott Elementary, and the strike-delayed third season is adding some exciting new names to the roster, chief among them Josh Segarra, perhaps best known for his work on The Other Two as Brooke’s Golden Retriever of a paramour, Lance.

In the immortal words of Lance: Aw hell yeah!

The acclaimed ABC sitcom boasts a lovable cast that includes creator/star (and recent Emmy winner!) Quinta Brunson, the legendary Sheryl Lee Ralph, breakout cutie Chris Perfetti, heartthrob Tyler James Williams, and scene-stealer Janelle James.

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Now, when it returns to air on February 7, the ensemble will be all the more irresistible with the addition of Segarra, one of the internet’s favorite crushes, who the gays have been obsessed with since at least his villainous turn opposite RuPaul in the short-lived AJ And The Queen.

Per Deadline, he’ll be joining Kimia Behpoornia (Atypical, Hacks) and Benjamin Norris (Never Have I Ever, Superstore) as a trio of “good-natured Philadelphia school district representatives who aim to bring fresh perspectives to their roles as school ambassadors.”

“Good-natured” sounds right up Segarra’s alley, considering everyone fell in love with him as Lance, the sweet, eternal optimist of The Other Two. And since the hilarious HBO Max comedy wrapped up its third and final season last year, fans are just excited to see his big beaming smile—and body-ody-ody—on their television screens again.

So, how might Segarra’s character—named Manny—shake up the status quo at Abbott? Well, that remains to be seen, but we have a few theories…

*Minor spoiler alert for Abbott Elementary, up through the season 2 finale*

Of course, the show has long played with the will-they-won’t-they dynamic of the plucky Janine (Brunson) and by-the-books Gregory (Williams), and while the season two finale found the pair admitting their feelings for one another, they also decided to give it some time and instead focus on their careers.

Oh, sure, that’s all well and good, but it’s kind of hard to focus on anything else when Segarra’s in the room, right? We wouldn’t be surprised to see his Manny charm-bomb Janine—intentionally or not—to the point that she throws all caution to the wind, thereby causing a rift between her and Gregory. The drama!

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But as we well know, Segarra’s appeal is universal, so it’s likely Janine will be the only one openly pining for his character. Janelle James’ Principal Ava is the thirstiest person alive, so we’re sure she’ll set her sights on Manny immediately. Maybe even Perfetti’s Jacob will catch feelings—though we’d hate to see that get in the way of his relationship with Zach (Larry Owens).

Honestly, the show would be smart to just pull a Scream VI and basically have Segarra play Lance all over again just with a different name.

Whatever’s in store, we hope Abbott Elementary finds every excuse it can to get Segarra to take his shirt off. Yeah, that might be tricky, given the school setting—but, come on, these writers are some of the smartest in the biz, surely they can figure something out. Please???

I’m hoping Josh Segarra is playing a new teacher. He has great comedic timing and he’s VERY easy on the eyes! #AbbottElementary this is gonna be me AND AVA!!!!! pic.twitter.com/8rpcRPZP2m— Kisha (@HonnyDipp) January 30, 2024

Josh Segarra stans everywhere, mark your calendars for February 7, when Abbott Elementary returns to ABC.