The Matlock gender-flipped sequel series on CBS has quickly become a hit for the network, which led to the show earning a Season 2 renewal after only airing two episodes. Not acting as a reboot and existing in the same universe as the original Matlock series, on top of a clever twist revealed at the end of the first episode, has enticed both critics and viewers and no one is happier than its star, Kathy Bates. The Oscar-winning actress was considering hanging up her acting cap before the role of Madeline Kingston/Madeline “Matty” Matlock came along because she thought her career was slowly coming to an end. But Matlock and now its renewal has made the actress grateful for this next act in her career.

During a chat with Newsweek, Bates got candid about her reaction to the renewal announcement, noting that the series saved her during a very uncertain time in her career. Despite the acclaim she has received over the span of her 55 years as an actress, Bates was worried that she would disappear from the limelight because roles weren’t coming her way at the same frequency anymore. With Matlock, she now has a renewed confidence in herself and her career.

“I can’t explain it. I really can’t. I just don’t know how all of this happened. I don’t know how I was able to do it. I don’t know how it came about. I really felt my career was coming to an end, and I’ve seen other actresses my age who do feel invisible. I went through an experience with an actor, I don’t want to say their name, but we got together for photographs of us in our costumes, and her costumes didn’t fit her at all. This was a woman who had an astounding career, and she was quite hurt by that. Did they not know her size? Did they not know her measurements or whatever? And it was really a humiliation for her. I was astounded by that. And in a way, I look back at that, and I think in some ways she was invisible to them, but I think also, all of us are invisible when it comes down to it. What power do we have when it came to the things in our lives, or much less the world around us? So I think we can all relate to that. I feel grateful to play the role. I feel grateful to have this opportunity. I’m certainly just thrilled with the numbers. I can’t believe all of that. And to be a woman, as you say, of a certain age, to have this happen is just, it’s unreal, it’s absolutely unreal. The boomer generation has sort of been pushed to the side. But in fact, we are a powerful force to be reckoned with, as you say, certainly elections and being a voting force.”

Matlock Has Become a Rare Network TV Hit

Developed by Jennie Snyder Urman, Matlock has already turned into a significant hit for CBS. The sneak peek episode that aired on Sept. 22 pulled in 7.73 million viewers, making it CBS’ biggest audience for a non-post-Super Bowl series premiere in five and a half years. The special episode grew to 10.67 million viewers after three days of cross-platform viewing, which boded very well for its official premiere on Oct. 17. The official premiere drew 6.38 million viewers, representing a 44 percent growth from the same-day average in that time period last season. The series was renewed soon after these results, as CBS clearly has confidence in the legal drama.

Related How CBS Kept Matlock Reboot Intriguing Without Giving Away Spoilers The CBS team generated enough buzz around the Matlock reboot, and delivered strong results.

Matlock sees Bates playing a lawyer named Madeline Kingston, who returns to practicing law following the death of her daughter Ellie in the opioid epidemic. In a bit of a twist, Kingston gets the job at Jacobson Moore by taking on the alias of a needy widow named Matty Matlock, a nod to the original series that her daughter loved watching. Madeline gets a job at Jacobson Moore because she believes someone working at the firm hid evidence that could’ve saved her daughter’s life. As she gains their trust, she helps her colleagues win big cases while also trying to discover who may have played a part in her daughter’s death.

The series has scored with viewers and critics, registering a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes with a total of 24 reviews counted. The reviews point to the clever twist revealed in the pilot episode that sets it apart from other procedural dramas, while also garnering Bates great reviews for her performance on the show. The actress has a new spark thanks to the success of Matlock, and she points to the character’s strength as something that has rubbed off on her.

“I don’t want to get too down about things. I have a friend whose mother is on the downward slope, so to speak. And I saw Jessica Tandy go through that. We were going to do something else together, and she couldn’t remember lines anymore, and I wonder if that’ll happen to me. When will that happen to me as I get older? So to have this reprieve from the thoughts of that and to delight in [Matty’s] cleverness, her passion, her wisdom, but also she screws up, she makes mistakes.”

Matlock
airs Thursday nights at 9:00 PM PST/8:00 PM central on CBS and is available the next day on Paramount+.