Castle season 8 premiere live stream: Will Rick unmask the mystery kidnapper and rescue Kate?

Castle season 8's premiere is expected to bring loads of tension between Rick Castle and Kate Beckett as the couple is set to work independently. After a heavy dose of cancellation rumours, the show was renewed by ABC for season 8 with a new team of show runners.

In season 7, Kate had been searching for her mystery novelist lover who went missing after a massive car crash. But this season, the plot will revolve around a kidnapper who tailors a chain of tricky situations for Rick to find his new bride.

The premiere episode is titled XY and the synopsis reads: "In the action packed season premiere, Castle and Beckett are adjusting to Beckett's career change, when a call from a mysterious stranger sets off an explosive chain of events. There are two sides to every story, and this unique two-parter will explore the same story from each of their perspectives, first from Castle's side as he searches for Beckett."

Click here to watch the season premiere live stream online. The popular crime thriller from ABC will narrate the same mystery-kidnapper story in two parts, from the point of view of both the show protagonists.

With Kate chosen to run for state Senate, Rick gets a new security specialist Hayley Vargas, to assist him. "[Toks] plays a really dynamic, fun character. It's a voice that the show doesn't have," executive producer Alexi Hawley told Entertainment Weekly.

"What's great about her is Castle [Nathan Fillion] has been investigating cases police-adjacent, so it's always about doing things the way police would. She doesn't do things that way, so that fun dynamic of, 'No, we break in rather than get a warrant,' is kind of fun." Castle season 8 will air the premiere episode on 21 September on ABC Network.