Jesse L. Martin Returning To ‘The Flash’ After Medical Leave

Jesse L. Martin has recovered from a back injury sufficiently enough to return to The Flash later this season, TVLine reports.

The site says that Martin’s medical leave will end with episode 15, in which he will once again appear onscreen. His previous appearance was in the show’s fourth episode (although he, like several other characters, appeared via old footage in the season’s eighth episode, which involved a lot of time travel).

“There’s an explanation, and then there’s another sort of thing down the line that will give more explanation as to why [Joe] was gone for so long,” showrunner Todd Helbing told TVLine.

Martin had suffered a back injury over the summer hiatus, resulting in him almost always sitting in the first episodes of this season. On the heels of his most recent on-camera appearance, a Warner Bros. TV rep told TVLine that the actor had in fact embarked on a medical leave, adding: “We wish him a full and speedy recovery and look forward to his return as Detective Joe West.”

The actor injured his back during the hiatus, and for the first few episodes of the season appeared onscreen, but was almost always seated.

With Martin back on set, Joe has had some big changes to deal with in this season, and the biggest has to do with his daughter. Earlier this season, Joe and Cecile welcomed their first child together and brought Jenna home. Now, the dad is trying to care of a baby while his eldest child is dealing with her time-traveling daughter from the future.

The Flash airs at 8 p.m. ET/PT Tuesdays on The CW.