The news caught some by surprise, since stars Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, and Eva Longoria are all signed on through 2013, and ‘Housewives’ creator Marc Cherry has said he wanted the series to run for nine seasons.

Cherry won’t serve as executive producer/showrunner this fall, but he’s expected to be involved as a consultant while also developing other shows for the network.