The cast and characters

Jeri Ryan (as Jessica Devlin)

Stepping into the killer heels of tough-talking District Attorney Jessica Devlin is Jeri Ryan – the woman who made the hearts of Trekkies (sorry – Trekkers) beat a little faster as the seductive Seven of Nine on Star Trek: Voyager.

The daughter of an American army officer, Jeri was born in Germany and raised in several military bases around the world (coincidentally, her co-star James Woods was also an "army brat"). Her striking beauty led to her being a runner-up in the Miss America pageant of 1990, and she used the exposure to break into showbiz. Though she lost an early role in the film Planes, Trains and Automobiles for "ruining every scene I was in", she's since become a TV favourite in shows like The OC, Two and a Half Men, and of course Shark.

Sam Page (as Casey Woodland)

Sam Page – who lights up the screen as the handsome (but rather arrogant) young attorney Casey Woodland – isn't just a pretty face. The acclaimed actor studied ecology and evolutionary biology at university, and a science journal even published his thesis on mosquitoes.

Acting was his passion, however, and he left a promising scientific career behind to make it in Hollywood. He's certainly come good, with roles in CSI and Point Pleasant leading to his breakthrough role in Shark. And here's a bit of trivia: he was actually born Sam Elliott, but changed his name to avoid being confused with the veteran character actor of the same name.

Sophina Brown (as Raina Troy)

Almost as smart and tough as James Woods's Sebastian Stark is fellow prosecutor Raina Troy. And doing full justice to the part is up-and-coming star Sophina Brown.

Although she's previously been in shows like Without a Trace and Law & Order, Shark provided Sophina with her first leading role, and she was understandably nervous when she went in for her screen test. She needn't have worried, though – the producers were so impressed that they rang to offer her the part less than five minutes after she'd left the screen test. As Sophina later confessed: "I screamed in the middle of Beverly Boulevard in my car."

Sarah Carter (as Madeleine Poe)

With her flowing blonde locks and beaming smile, Sarah Carter certainly looks every inch the Hollywood star. But Sarah originally trained as a ballet dancer rather than an actor, appearing in productions of Cats and A Chorus Line. It was much later, after taking time out to study fine arts in Europe, that she enrolled at drama school in her native Canada.

Since breaking into showbiz she has graced shows like Smallville, Entourage and Boston Legal with her presence, but thanks to Shark she is now finally showing off her leading lady skills as the high-powered, uber-ambitious attorney Madeleine Poe.

Alexis Cruz (as Martin Allende)

Alexis Cruz has certainly come a long way since the days he used to star in TV ads for macaroni cheese ready meals (well, we all have to start somewhere).

After his breakthrough role in the movie Stargate, Alexis has appeared in everything from NYPD Blue to CSI, and – being of Puerto Rican descent – has also become known as a prominent activist encouraging more Hispanic Americans to get involved in the arts. He also happens to be a trained paramedic, but acting is certainly his greatest love – as is very apparent to anyone who sees him as the dedicated, cerebral lawyer Martin Allende in Shark.

Danielle Panabaker (as Julie Stark)

She may have made her screen debut as recently as 2002, but Danielle Panabaker has certainly crammed a lot in since then. The ambitious young star, who first made her mark in several US TV ads, has been in Malcolm in the Middle, The Bernie Mac Show, the movie Sky High and the acclaimed miniseries Empire Falls (in which she effortlessly acted alongside such screen titans as Paul Newman, Ed Harris and Philip Seymour Hoffman).
Shark sees her playing James Woods's 16-year-old daughter Julie Stark – a source of constant worry for her otherwise confident and invulnerable father. Just watch the sparks fly…