'West Wing' actress takes title role in 'Finnegan'

Last time she appeared on ABC's airwaves, Teri Polo was playing a movie star. Her next role at the network is something a little grittier.

Polo, who starred in the above-referenced "I'm With Her" and the final season of "The West Wing," will play the lead in ABC's drama pilot "Finnegan," according to The Hollywood Reporter. She'll play Erin Finnegan, the head of a vice and organized crime unit at the LAPD.

Though Polo has the title role in the pilot presentation, she's among the last of the principal cast to join the project. The show signed several actors, including Domenick Lombardozzi ("The Wire") and Tasha Smith ("Why Did I Get Married?"), to play members of Finnegan's team and Tzi Ma ("24") as her boss.

Trent Jones ("Threat Matrix") is writing the pilot, and veteran helmer Gary Fleder ("October Road," "The Evidence") will direct.

In addition to her time on "The West Wing" and "I'm With Her," starred in FOX's short-lived "Wedding Bells" in the 2006-07 season and played Ben Stiller's fiancee in "Meet the Parents" and "Meet the Fockers." Her credits also include guest stints on "Sports Night" and "The Practice."