Actor Scott Turner Schofield is officially joining the cast of the CBS daytime soap The Bold and the Beautiful on May 8, marking the first time a transgender actor will play major, recurring role on a daytime soap in the U.S.

Schofield will play a character named Nick who is a mentor to fashion model Maya Avant, a trans woman.

Schofield said of the soap, “I am an expert on this stuff, and I do study it. I’ve seen everything there is to see and I am telling you that it is unprecedented and it’s going in the right direction. It’s going in the direction that transgender people can be happy about. And not only transgender people, but everyone who knows and loves a transgender person.”

Related: Diversity speaker Scott Turner Schofield speaks to TEDx Houston about transgender identity and ending gender.