Battlestar Galactica season 3 spoilers

From syfyportal, "The following story contains MODERATE SPOILERS for Season 3 of "Battlestar Galactica."

When fans find out which popular character from "Battlestar Galactica" is going to vanish from the ragtag fleet, they'll not only be shocked, they'll be angry.

"In the second half of this season, you can expect many stunning surprises and revelations," show producer David Weddle told SyFy Portal's Michael Hinman. "We will experience the devastating loss of a much loved character who is central to 'Galactica,' and it will shake the crew to the core."

Speculation has centered around the departure of Katee Sackhoff from the show, at least temporarily, taking her character of Kara "Starbuck" Thrace with her. Weddle, however, wouldn't deny or confirm which character would be taken out except that the ripple effects through the rest of the crew will be startling.

"I imagine many fans will be outraged and screaming for our heads," he said. "But others may take comfort in the fact that every time we upset the chessboard and scatter the pieces, it opens the door to many new provocative and exciting stories in the season to come."

How much these changes will enthrall fans will most likely be reflected in the ratings. And while it appears most people connected with the show expect a renewal by SciFi Channel, Weddle says he's not taking any chances.

"The renewal of the show depends on the ratings this January and February," he said. "If you care about this show, browbeat your friends who are not yet fans to watch it. Often, people are resistant because of the title to invest in the show. But I find that if you can get them to watch a few episodes, they almost always get hooked."

Weddle says moving the show to Sundays, beginning this week at 10 p.m. ET, should be a tremendous benefit to the ratings bottom line.

"I am OK with the move to Sundays," he said. "I know many people who have not watched the show on Friday nights because they are out socializing. There will be more available eyeballs on Sunday nights, which is a good thing. But it is also a much more competitive night. We just have to hang tight and hope we draw a decent audience."

There is interesting competition for "Battlestar Galactica" on Sunday night. On cable alone, FX airs its new series "Dirt." As for the networks, they are airing new episodes of popular shows including "Brothers & Sisters" on ABC and "Without a Trace" on CBS. Also, NBC is airing "Crossing Jordan" as well.

Deciding to DVR the other shows and watching BSG live instead could pay off, Weddle said.

"We will learn shocking secrets about several other characters," he said. "Some of the story threads set into motion at the start of the season will be resolved, but in unexpected ways."

"Battlestar Galactica" returns right after the series premiere of "The Dresden Files" Sunday at 10 p.m. ET on SciFi Channel."