QUICK TAKE

KEN BAUMANN JOINS CAST OF ABC'S "CASTLE" IN A RECURRING ROLE

Actor Ken Baumann ("The Secret Life of the American Teenager") will join ABC's "Castle" in a recurring role, playing the first boyfriend for Alexis Castle (Molly Quinn). In his first episode, "Punked," Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) is dealing with the fact Alexis is excited about having her first boyfriend, but he's unnerved that she's not confiding in him with all the details. "Castle" will premiere Monday, September 20 (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET).

On the series last season, Castle and Beckett's (Stana Katic) relationship grew stronger as they dodged bullets, captured killers and solved countless murder cases in their unorthodox partnership. But by the Season Two finale, Beckett's new relationship with a Robbery detective had pushed Castle away, forcing them both to confront their feelings. When Castle left to finish writing his second Nikki Heat novel, "Naked Heat," Beckett had to watch him walk away, unable to express her true feelings and unsure whether he would return to the precinct.

The series stars Nathan Fillion as Richard Castle, Stana Katic as Detective Kate Beckett, Ruben Santiago-Hudson as NYPD Captain Roy Montgomery, Tamala Jones as Medical Examiner Lanie Parish, Jon Huertas as NYPD Detective Javier Esposito, Seamus Dever as NYPD Detective Kevin Ryan, Molly Quinn as Alexis Castle, with Susan Sullivan as Martha Rodgers.

"Castle" is produced by ABC Studios. Andrew Marlowe is creator/executive producer, with Rob Bowman, Laurie Zaks and David Amann also executive producers.