Castle's unexpected cancellation
nearly left fans and the creative team with nothing but a cliffhanger.
What the heck happened and why? The writers of Castle planned on getting the
greenlight for Season 9. Because of this, they created a story where Beckett and
Castle are attacked and gunned down in their home. The season was meant
to end with both Castle and Beckett lying in a pool of their own blood,
with their fate left up in the air. While that would have made for a
good season finale, the fate of the cliffhanger was already revealed.
Beckett would succumb to her injuries, as Stana Katic was not slated to return for Season
9. The actress had been unceremoniously fired. "Goodnight, Castle." This came as a surprise. The entire
premise of the series was built around the relationship between Castle and Beckett. "I'm still amazed at the depths of your
strength and your heart. And your hotness." It's because of her that there are murders to
solve at all. Katic's firing wasn't received positively by long-time Castle fans, as the entire
point of the show would change with her death. "You're the best that I've ever
trained. Maybe the best I've ever seen. But you weren't having any
fun before he came along." Luckily or not so luckily, depending
on whom you ask, Castle was canceled, so audiences never
saw a season without Beckett. Before it was revealed that Season 8 would be the
final season for "Castle," the series was gearing up to go in an entirely new direction. With
the death of Stana Katic's Detective Beckett, the premise of the show was going to shift. Season
8 had already laid the groundwork for this change, as Castle stopped working with the
NYPD homicide department. In order to appease his interest in all things
murder, he opens his own PI business, where his daughter Alexis, played
by Molly Quinn, works with him. "Oh my God, this turned out so much
cooler than I thought it would!" He's also working with a new female
protagonist, Hayley Shipton, played by Toks Olagundoye, a former MI6 operative
who's moved into the security business. "Hope you don't mind. I'm just
giving her some PI lessons." "Hayley was teaching me the
art of manipulating men." She was clearly meant to be a Beckett replacement
for the show if it continued into Season 9. According to Entertainment Weekly, had Castle
been renewed, it would have revolved around Castle's PI business as he hunts his wife's
killer. It's likely that Castle would have uncovered a larger conspiracy revolving around
Beckett's death. Everyone in the show would be out for blood, which would allow "Castle"
to include all previous main characters, such as Detective Javier and Detective
Ryan, in the reconfigured series. Season 9 could have shown how Castle's search
for vengeance would take him down a dark path, but it's likely that, by the end of the season,
Castle would have found some form of closure. It's been suggested that Castle stars Nathan
Fillion and Stana Katic didn't get along, and that friction is why Katic was fired. "Your inspiration might strike
you sooner than you think." An inside source spilled to Hello!
magazine just how bad the castmates' relationship was. The actors wouldn't
speak to each other outside of filming, and Katic could often be found in tears in
her dressing room. According to the insider, the crew encouraged the co-stars to go to
therapy to resolve their intense dislike of one another. US Weekly also reported the on-set
tension. Another insider claimed that Fillion was horrible to his co-star, while Katic just
wanted to get her job done without complications. "Yeah, well, things have never
been easy between you and me." While neither Katic nor Fillion has ever commented
on these rumors, the fact that they haven't refuted the reports speaks volumes, especially in
light of Katic's surprise firing from the series. Katic was reportedly blindsided by Castle's
decision to terminate her contract. At the time, however, the actress remained
professional and didn't comment on her relationship with co-star Nathan
Fillion or the show's sudden ending. After some time had passed, Katic
shared with News Corp. that she was proud of her work on the show and how
special her character, Beckett, was, and that she was hurt and confused by the
way it all ended. She told The Daily Mail, "It would be a disservice to the work that I
did, which I feel partly contributed to the success of the show, if I looked back on it and
was anything but grateful for the awesome run." Katic shared with Entertainment Weekly that she
found her ending with the series "harsh" and that she was still unclear as to what happened
between her and the network. However, she chose to look back fondly on her experience and on
the people that she met while working on set. Just tell us, Stana: what was the drama
between you and Nathan Fillion? Spill the tea! Castle executive producer Alexi Hawley says
they always had a contingency plan just in case the show didn't get renewed.
While Season 8 of Castle was airing, the network had yet to announce there would be
a Season 9. In fact, the cast and crew were not made aware of the network's decision to pull
the plug until close to the Season 8 finale. Hawley told Entertainment Weekly, "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." It wasn't something the crew wanted to do.
They were hopeful Castle would be renewed, which would allow the series to tackle
the characters' pursuit of vengeance over Beckett's death. According to Hawley, they
shot a final time jump scene to appease fans, as they didn't want to leave them with questions,
but co-showrunner Terence Paul Winter shared with Entertainment Weekly that his "hope [was]
that it [would never see] the light of day." Sadly, it did. The clip jumps seven
years in the future and features voiceovers from Castle and Beckett.
The two are very much alive, thriving, and still in love. They even have a house full of
kids, proving that they still make a great team. At the end of Season 6, Castle's original
showrunner, Andrew Marlowe, stepped down. "We have a great lead producer, Andrew Marlowe, who loves women. And so I think he loved
letting her shine as a woman in the end." Marlowe went out with a bang. The Season
6 finale showed Castle being kidnapped on his wedding day. It was a punch to the gut.
Audiences thought they were finally getting a happy ending only to have the dream snatched
away. Season 7 was the beginning of the end for Beckett and Castle's relationship, as they
were constantly tested and pulled apart, almost as though the writers were no longer
planning to have them end up together. Which, well, they weren't. The writers
planned to kill Beckett off. Before leaving Castle, Marlowe described
the series as "a love story wrapped in a procedural." However, Seasons 7 and 8 veered
drastically from that concept. The show began to focus more on the character of Castle
and how he flourished without Beckett. Will they/won't they relationships are staples in
television; think The Vampire Diaries, Scandal, or even Friends. Audiences yearn for these
couples to wake up and get together. From the first moment of Castle, it was clear that
Richard Castle was into Detective Kate Beckett. "The guy is crazy about you, and despite
your little act, you're crazy about him." Whether she was interested in him remained to be
seen. While it was obvious that the two would be the endgame, their romance wasn't necessary.
While Castle and Beckett were the glue holding the series together, their relationship didn't
need to turn into Bones and Booth from another, similar cop drama, Bones. They could have
followed the Mulder and Scully model instead. The two didn't need to become a couple for
the show to work, especially since they're separated by other romantic partners,
by the fear of admitting their feelings, or by jobs in different cities. Beckett and
Castle hardly ever share scenes in Season 8, as Beckett's off taking part in a secret
mission. And don't even get us started on that time Castle straight-up
disappeared on their wedding day. "Kate. Kate, why are you shutting me out?" "Castle, I love you." Because of all this drama, the couple's happy
ending feels rushed. Audiences rarely saw them happy together over eight seasons, so it's hard
to believe that, seven years later, things are picture perfect. Maybe the writers had the right
idea when they planned to kill Beckett off. The seven-year time jump tacked on
at the end of Season 8 meant to make fans happy. After everything
Beckett and Castle go through, the show does a 180 and lets them live out
their lives together happily ever after. "Every writer needs
inspiration. And I found mine." This was the original concept for Castle's
first showrunner Andrew Marlowe. Marlowe stepped down after running Seasons 1 through 6.
He had some standout episodes during his time, but it's Season 6 Episode 5 that
shines when considering the series end. The episode is titled "Time Will
Tell" and plays into one of Castle's fantastical ideas surrounding a case.
He and Beckett encounter Simon Doyle, who claims he's a time traveler sent back
to stop a terrible event from unfolding. "Look. I'm a temporal anthropologist. What we do is we travel back in time and we
study culturally significant eras." Naturally, Castle is all in, while Beckett has no
time to engage with Doyle's apparent delusions. By the end of the episode, Doyle
shares with Castle that he and Beckett are married in the future with three kids. "Real charmer, that one. I
can't believe you marry her." Beckett is a Senator and Castle is now an author
of "serious literature." While this is a fun way to end the episode, the time jump in the series
finale seemingly confirms Doyle's prediction. At least, on the kid front, as Beckett is seen
chasing around three kids in her home with Castle. Poor ratings are usually the biggest driver for
giving a show the ax. If a series isn't bringing in enough viewers, it's not doing its job, and
networks use that as an excuse to cut ties with a series. While this can sometimes happen too
soon, as with Firefly, Castle is lucky enough to have run for eight successful seasons, even
if some were praised more highly than others. According to CBR, the lower ratings from
Castle Season 8 heavily contributed to the series being canceled. In fact, viewership
had been declining over the previous few seasons. It seems as though Season 8
was the final straw for the network, as they no longer had faith that the show
would bring in the big numbers that it used to. "I thought that you would –" "Just take you back, in spite
of what you put me through." Season 8 of Castle was averaging under 10
million viewers per episode. And if that sounds like a lot, the highest viewership
for the network at the same time was over 13 million. Season 8 saw the show's lowest ever
numbers, which had been dropping significantly since the new showrunners took over. This
could be a direct result of the show moving away from the Castle/Beckett romance
and more into a Castle-centric story. "It is time to get back in
the Richard Castle business." "Oh well, thank you. I'm flattered." Due to the decline in viewership, Castle was
slated for major budget cuts if Season 9 were to move forward. According to CBR, the only way
another season of Castle would have been greenlit was if the show were able to significantly reduce
the amount of money it was spending on production. "The studio goes and casts the "braless
coed in blood-soaked t-shirt" from Knife 2?" This may have contributed to Stana
Katic's dismissal from the show, as both Katic and co-star Tamala
Jones, who played Dr. Lanie Parish, were asked not to return for Season 9. According
to CinemaBlend, in 2016 Katic was revealed to be one of the highest-paid actresses on television.
This would have been right around the time Season 8 of Castle was filming. Katic's negotiated
salary landed her at approximately $12 million per season, based on the one-year contract
she signed after filming wrapped on Season 7. With budget cuts looming, and plans
on moving the story away from Castle and Beckett's romance, cutting out a $12
million+ salary is one sure way to do it. Unfortunately for the crew, this wasn't
enough, and Castle was still canceled. Luckily, Beckett and Castle got the ending
they deserved — which happens to be the one that original showrunner
Andrew Marlowe always envisioned.
