Fans of the crime drama television series 'Castle' will be disappointed to learn that Penny Johnson Jerald will not return for the show's eighth season to reprise the role of Captain Victoria Gates.

The Hollywood Reporter claims that recently Jerald took to her Twitter handle to announce that she will not return to the ABC drama series, which also stars Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic.

The actress wrote on the social media site, "To my 'Castle' fans around the world, as of late yesterday I am surprised and saddened to learn that I will no longer be a part of the 'Castle' family." Jerald further wrote, "Thank you all for your support and love. Hugs from PJJ."

The character of Captain Gates, portrayed by Jerald in the series, was the latest member of the 12th precinct, and it took over after the death of Roy Montgomery. Jerald officially signed to star on 'Castle' in 2011, after working in other popular shows like 'Bones' and 'NCIS.'

Earlier, Jerald also starred played the role of Sherry Palmer for three seasons on '24' in 2001.

Recently, ABC appointed new showrunners and also re-signing Katic and Fillion to new deals. Soon after, the executives of the network announced that the show will be returning for an abridged final season comprising only 13 episodes. In fact, earlier reports hinted that the upcoming season of 'Castle' will be a very brief one. However, ABC executives have emphasized that they are yet to determine the precise number of episodes that would be telecast in the final season of the show.

Early last month, ABC announced that Terence Paul Winter and Alexi Hawley had been appointed as new co-showrunners. They replaced the experienced David Amann.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Winter has been associated with the series in the capacity of a producer for more than 125 episodes. He was also the supervising producer and co-producer prior to being elevated to the position of executive producer of the show. On the other hand, Hawley will be rejoining 'Castle' after a three-year stint as a writer and co-producer earlier.

The report further stated that Jerald's character Captain Victoria Gates actually did not have much of a real story line on the show, and it is believed that her role can be easily replaceable.