It's not very often that Jeri Ryan gets to be a part of something from the beginning. She was first brought in part way through the run of "Star Trek: Voyager" to add some sex appeal as the former Borg drone Seven of Nine. She was added to the cast of "Boston Public" to help give that show a ratings boost.

And now she's filling in on the hit TNT show "Leverage."

The A-Team-style drama which just aired its summer finale Wednesday waved good-bye (temporarily) to Gina Bellman, whose character of Sophie Devereaux is taking a break to accommodate Bellman's pregnancy. In her place will be Tara, a character brought to life by Ryan, who is used to stepping in as the new girl.

"I've been the designated pitch-hitter for most of my career," Ryan told iF Magazine. "I think 'Shark' is the first series I was on that I was on from the beginning. I think every series I've ever done, I was added midway through."

Ryan says Tara is having a little trouble being accepted by the gang, led by Timothy Hutton's character of Nathan Ford.

"Of course, they're all hesitant," Ryan said. "They're not welcoming Tara with open arms, so she has to prove herself to everyone and goes one step at at time."

Ryan has an opportunity to join a show that is not needing her to boost ratings, but instead to help keep the show a success during Bellman's leave.

Audiences for the show have grown from an average of 3.2 million in the first season to 4.1 million in the most current season, earning itself a third installment. Having Ryan onboard could only help make that show's ratings go up.

"It's a really ambitious show and schedule," she said. "The scripts are really complex stories, with a lot of action that you normally would see in an hour TV show. They are doing some pretty amazing work, on a pretty tight schedule. It's pretty amazing."

For the full iF interview, click here.