Not only will the mysterious Neal Cassidy be back on Once Upon a Time this year, but we can expect to see a lot of Michael Raymond-James!

We were first introduced to Raymond-James’ character Neal Cassidy in the season 2 premiere episode “Broken,” and we only saw him for a split second as he received a mysterious note about the curse on Storybrooke having been broken.

In the episode “Tallahassee,” we learned Neal’s true importance, when he was revealed to be Henry’s father. He and Emma were very much in love, but after August told him about Emma’s destiny, he left her behind.

We already know that Neal will be back this year, and there is speculation that he might even be Rumpelstiltskin’s son Bae. Now, the actor has revealed via Twitter that we can expect to see him in more episodes than we may have thought. Although the tweet has since been removed, Once Upon a Fan picked up the story:

The tweet confirms that James, who will reappear in episode 2×14 “Manhattan,” will be sticking around at least through season 2 – suggesting that he’ll have a more permanent role in Emma and Henry’s lives, and maybe Rumpel’s as well if speculation is to be believed.

Are you glad to learn that Neal will return on a more permanent basis?