Kate Beckett faced a difficult decision in the "Castle" seventh season finale whether to rise in the ranks of the NYPD or start a political career. That cliffhanger will be solved as soon as the ABC drama returns this fall and the "Castle" showrunners have revealed which path the veteran homicide detective has chosen.
SPOILER ALERT!
After acing her captain's exam, Beckett will stay a member of the NYPD and become the new captain of the 12th precinct, according to TVLine.
"At the end of the day, we came into this season wanting to shake things up," co-showrunner Alexi Hawley told TVLine. "The show has been doing a great job with what it's been doing, but now we've been given an opportunity to really sort of add some energy to it."
In addition to Beckett's promotion, "Castle" will add new series regular Toks Olagundoye, who will play security specialist Hayley Shipton, and recurring star Sunkrish Bala as tech analyst Vikram Singh. The two-part season eight premiere will also set up "an event that shifts the entire season into a higher velocity" and "is part of what will set everything up for the next 20 episodes," Stana Katic told Deadline.
The showrunners Hawley and Terence Paul Winter did consider Beckett entering the political arena, "and it's not like it's off the table," Winter told TVLine. But removing Beckett from the force would have taken away the main focus of the show - author Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) solving crimes with the NYPD.
"What we realized is that the best way to tell 'Castle's' stories is to have Castle investigating twisty, fun cases. And the best way to do that is to keep Beckett in the precinct," Winter said.
With Beckett in an administrative position, it will likely take her away from investigating cases which will "shake things up" between her and Castle.
"The important thing to say about [Rick and Kate] is that the show has always been and will always be about their love affair," Hawley told TVLine. "But we're looking to add some drama to it, some park to it. We're going to have fun. It's going to be emotional at times, it will be romantic... It will be everything."
"Castle" will return on Monday, Sept. 21 at 10 p.m. on ABC.
