NBC’s ‘Community’ season 5 spoilers: ‘Switched at Birth’s’ Katie Leclerc to help out Abed

“Community” is really pulling guest stars in from all across the board, whether it is the extreme (“Breaking Bad” star Jonathan Banks) to the family-friendly … which is where we are coming from when it comes to this casting news. Katie Leclerc, who is best known for her role on ABC Family’s “Switched at Birth,” has booked an appearance on the NBC cult favorite’s fifth season. The actress herself was one of the first to confirm it courtesy of a post on Instagram.

As for who exactly she is going to be playing at Greendale Community College, TVLine reports that she will take on the part of Carol, a “sweet” woman who is in the process of trying to teach Abed American Sign Language. (Carol herself is hearing impaired, and Leclerc has a degenerative disease known as Meniere’s disease that impacts her inner ear.)

We know already that Leclerc can be pretty funny, based on a previous episode of “The Big Bang Theory” that she did as a “girlfriend” of Raj’s who took advantage of him for everything when she realized just how insecure and desperate he was for female companionship. The test here will come in keeping up with Abed, a guy whose mouth literally talks a mile a second and is as spastic as they come. Given that he won’t have Troy to help relax him out after episode five, the scales may be tipped even further to the level of insanity.

Do you like this guest spot? Be sure to share your thoughts below! Katie is joining a legion of other guest stars for the season that includes returnees John Oliver (back for many episodes as Ian Duncan) and even “Star Trek” / “Reading Rainbow” legend LeVar Burton. There is no return date yet for the show, but we imagine that will change after NBC sees how the ratings for “Welcome to the Family” and “Sean Saves the World” fare.

Photo: NBC