With two new showrunners overlooking the series, fans will see major changes in "Castle" season 8. The change starts with the cast. Penny Johnson Jerald will no longer reprise her role as Captain Victoria Gates in the new season of the show.

The actress broke the news via Twitter. In the post, she thanked and bade fans of the show goodbye as she announced her untimely departure from the series, which "saddened and surprised" fans as it did her. 

It is believed that this is a creative decision intended to change the lives of the protagonists of the series. The actress' exit opens up new opportunities for Kate Beckett and this might just be the reason new showrunners Alexi Hawley and Terence Paul Winter opted to write off Johnson's character. 

"Castle" season 7 ended with Stana Katic's character coming upon crossroads and on the verge of a career change. According to some reports, the season may have been setting up Kate taking on a new job as the Captain of the division. 

However, back in season 7, she was accused of being unqualified for a detective position, which obstructs this move. Nonetheless, it is heavily rumored that come "Castle" season 8, Kate will no longer be a detective. 

There are speculations that she will become a politician soon and that she may be off to try her luck in the New York State Senate. This career shift will cause the show to shy away from having Castle and Beckett share as much screen time as they had in the previous seasons. Nonetheless, this might just be Hawley and Winter's plan after all.

"Going into season 8, it feels like it's time to shake things up a little bit. We just want to get in there and try to tell some really dynamic stories," the former told Entertainment Weekly. 

"Castle" season 8 premieres this fall.