ABC's hit series "Castle" will experience a major shakeup at the end of Season 8 when leading lady Stana Katic and fellow original series star Tamala Jones will exit the show.
While Katic and Jones will both not be involved in the next season of the procedural crime drama, negotiations with series star Nathan Fillion for a ninth and final season are underway, even though "Castle" has still not technically been renewed yet. If the show does get renewed, it will probably be shortened to only a 13-episode season.
"Kate Beckett has been a beloved character on our hit series Castle for the past 8 years. We are grateful for Stana Katic's talent and dedication to the series and we hope to continue our relationship," ABC said in a statement. "Tamala Jones has also been an integral part of the series and we are grateful she was a part of 'Castle.'"
Katic played the role of Detective Kate Beckett on the show, and she reportedly was not even approached by ABC to renew her contract due to budget problems. While Katic was not the titular character in the series, "Castle" creator Andrew Marlowe previously said the relationship between her character and Fillion's Catsle was central to the concept of the show. Both Katic and Jones were informed late last week.
"Rather then distract from what was an amazing experience I would just like to say that I'm very grateful to ABC for giving me the opportunity to be a part of a much beloved show," Katic said in a statement. "Thank you to the fans."
Jones, who played medical examiner Lanie Parish, also released her own statement.
"I will greatly miss the cast and crew - it's been a privilege getting to work with this incredibly hard working group of people," Jones said. "Thank you to ABC for this opportunity and to the fans for their unwavering support. It's been an incredible journey and I can't wait for what lies ahead!"
Even though the fate of the popular show is not up in the air, executive producers Alexi Hawley and Terence Paul Winter recently revealed that they already shot the scene they wish the series to end on.
"If we hear that we're not coming back, we have shot something that we can put at the end of the episode as a way to put a button on everything," Hawley said. "Obviously that would be a bad thing because it would mean no more. We did it in order to try to protect the fans, because you can't end the series on a cliffhanger."
"Castle" airs Mondays, 10 p.m. on ABC.
