A new character stirs up more drama In the upcoming episode of FOX's "Empire" season 3.

Titled "Love is a Smoke," the show's next episode will introduce Lucious' (Terrence Howard) new adversary. According to the official synopsis, Lucious becomes uneasy about the future when Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) gives him some unexpected news. The feud between Cookie and Giuliana (guest star Nia Long) gets worse when the latter moves in on Lucious. Determined to get what she wants, Giuliana convinces Cookie's ex-husband to agree with her new plans.

Meanwhile, Tariq (Morocco Omari) and Anika (Grace Gealey) come up with a new plan to take down Lucious. New character Charlotte Frost (guest star Eva Longoria) enters the picture and she starts to hold the EMPIRE Las Vegas dream in her hands.

In this week's "My Naked Villainy" episode, "Empire" finally managed to bounce back from last Wednesday's series low after having increased ratings in both key measures. The Fox musical had an average of 2.3 rating in the 18–49 demo and 6.6 million viewers. This is a bit higher compared to the 2.2 rating and 6.4 million viewers last week. As a result, "Empire" was the top-rated program of the night.

As announced in January, Longoria's Charlotte is a formidable director of the state gaming commission. Since she is an executive in the all-powerful organization, the new female character has the power to make-or-break Lucious' dreams of expanding his company to Las Vegas. Charlotte exudes an alluring facade but beneath it lies dark secrets and corruption. Longoria joins other "Empire" guest stars for this season including Long, Taye Diggs, Phylicia Rashad, Demi Moore and Rumer Willis.

Best known for her Golden Globe-nominated role as Gabrielle in "Desperate Housewives," Longoria also stars in the feature film "Lowriders," which premieres on May 12. The 42-year-old is also a cast member in "Decline and Fall," a British miniseries which stars comedy actor Jack Whitehall.

The third season of "Empire" airs every Wednesday night at 9 p.m. EDT on FOX.