'Castle' alum Stana Katic to star on new series 'Absentia'

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 27 (UPI) -- Stana Katic will return to television on the new series Absentia.

The 38-year-old actress confirmed she's in talks for the AXN crime drama by re-tweeting news of her casting Wednesday.

Deadline had reported Katic is in final negotiations for the show. AXN, a Sony Pictures Television channel, has greenlighted an initial 10 episodes and will begin production in early 2017.

Absentia centers on an FBI agent (Katic) who disappears while hunting a serial killer and is declared dead. The character is found six years later with no memory of the interim, and is implicated in a new series of murders when she returns home.

South Beach creator Matt Cirulnick wrote and will executive produce the series, with Oded Ruskin (False Flag) as director. Ruskin will also produce with Maria Feldman of Masha Productions, which is producing the drama.

"Absentia is the perfect blend of crime thriller and character-driven drama for the AXN audience," Sony Pictures Television Networks programming and production executive vice president Marie Jacobson said in a statement.

"With a strong lead, Matt's writing, and Oded's direction, we have a signature series packed with suspense, surprise and emotional turns that feels distinctly AXN, and has great global potential," she added.

Katic is best known for playing Kate Beckett on Castle, which was abruptly canceled in May following news the actress would depart after Season 8. Her co-star Nathan Fillion told the New York Post this month that the show's finale wasn't as "beautiful" as he hoped.