Los Angeles ( CNN ) -- Comedic actress Jenny McCarthy will fill one of the empty seats around the table on `` The View '' vacated by Joy Behar and Elisabeth Hasselbeck , ABC announced Monday . McCarthy , who has been on the daytime talk show 17 times -- eight as a co-host -- will become a permanent co-host when season 17 kicks off on September 9 , according to the network . `` Jenny brings us intelligence as well as warmth and humor , '' said `` View '' co-founder Barbara Walters . `` She can be serious and outrageous . She has connected with our audience and offers a fresh point of view . '' The announcement quotes McCarthy , 40 , saying she is `` beyond thrilled '' to take her place alongside Walters `` and the other amazing women at the table . '' `` I look forward to helping make hot topics a little bit hotter , and showing my mom that my interrupting skills have finally paid off , '' McCarthy said . She also thanks VH1 for allowing her to take the job by releasing her from her contract with the cable channel , which aired `` The Jenny McCarthy Show . '' McCarthy 's entertainment career launched with a nude spread in Playboy magazine in 1993 . She was named 1994 Playmate of the Year . Her film credits include roles in `` Scream 3 '' and `` Scary Movie 3 . '' She is also a best-selling author . What do you think of McCarthy as a choice to co-host `` The View . '' If you disagree , who would you have hired ?
The former Playboy Playmate joins Playboy 's Playboy Playmate in the Year . McCarthy has been on the daytime talk show eight times -- eight as a co-host . She promises to make `` hot topics a little bit hotter '' Barbara Walters `` can be serious and outrageous , '' Barbara Walters says .