New ‘Beauty’

“Beauty and the Beast” star Linda Hamilton will be replaced by actress Jo Anderson when the series returns later this season on CBS, inside sources tell us. Spokespersons for CBS, producers Witt-Thomas Productions, Hamilton and Anderson all declined comment, but a source at ICM, the agency that represents Anderson, confirmed the casting.

Anderson was a regular on NBC’s short-lived dramatic series, “Dream Street,” earlier this year, and has appeared in TV movies and a feature film, “Miles from Home.”

The actress won’t take over Hamilton’s character, Catherine Chandler, but will originate the part of Diana Bennett, the new female lead opposite Vincent the Beast (Ron Perlman).

She’ll debut with a new villain named Gabriel in an episode entitled “When Churchyards Yawn.”