ABC’s ‘Castle’ Staying Put on Mondays

A planned Sunday experiment is scrapped. But Dana Delany still set to guest star in two-part episode later this month

Looks like "Castle" won’t be getting a Sunday night tryout after all.

Earlier this year, ABC announced that it would be airing a two-part episode of "Castle," with the first part airing Sunday, March 21 at 10 p.m. behind an all-new "Desperate Housewives." The show, with special guest Dana Delany, would then conclude on March 22 in "Castle’s" regular 10 p.m. Monday slot.

Delany’s still set to guest. But ABC today told affiliates it was pulled the planned Sunday broadcast of "Castle."

So what happened?

An ABC insider says that with the new "Dancing with Stars" cast getting good buzz, the network wanted to maximize the number of original episodes of "Castle" on Mondays. Airing a first-run hour on Sunday would’ve mean an extra "Castle" repeat in the show’s normal timeslot.

The good news: "Castle" has been doing great on Mondays behind "The Bachelor" and now seems to have firmly established itself as a success story for the network.

Meanwhile, though nothing’s official, it’s still looking as if  new comedy "Romantically Challenged" will get the 9:30 p.m. post- "DWTS" timeslot sometime in April (assuming ABC doesn’t change its mind about the show).

 

 

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