Matlock (2024 TV series) explained

Matlock is an American legal drama television series that premiered with a sneak peek on September 22, 2024, before its timeslot premiere on October 17 on CBS. The show was developed by Jennie Snyder Urman, and draws from the original Matlock TV series which starred Andy Griffith, but with a gender flipped lead character played by Kathy Bates and a vastly different premise overall. In October 2024, the series was renewed for a second season.

Premise

Wealthy retired lawyer Madeline Kingston returns to practice seeking justice for the death of her daughter Ellie in the opioid epidemic. Kingston gets a job, using the alias of needy widow Matty Matlock, at the law firm she believes hid evidence that could have saved her daughter's life. To gain the firm's trust, she must first apply her intellect to help her colleagues with other challenging cases.^[1]

Within the universe of the series, the original Matlock series aired as it did in the real world, and Ellie's love of the series inspires Madeline's alias.

Cast and characters

Main

• Kathy Bates as Madeline "Matty" Matlock / Madeline Kingston, who claims to be a widowed lawyer, returning to the workforce after a few decades, and raising her grandson following her daughter's death from an opioid overdose. Claiming financial distress, Matlock takes a job at the law firm Jacobson Moore, working with Olympia, a junior partner at the firm who becomes her boss. In fact, Kingston is wealthy and happily married, though indeed grieving the loss of her daughter and seeking retribution. She gave herself the pen name of Matlock that was inspired by the TV series.^[2]
• Skye P. Marshall as Olympia Lawrence,^[3] a junior partner at Jacobson Moore who becomes Matlock's boss. In the pilot episode, she is in the midst of divorcing Julian while aiming at a senior partner role with the support of her father-in-law. Olympia is reluctant to take Matty under her wing.
• Jason Ritter as Julian, a senior partner at Jacobson Moore. In the pilot episode, he is in the midst of divorcing Olympia and engaged in a major settlement action involving a large pharmaceutical corporation.
• David Del Rio as Billy Martinez,^[3] a first year associate at Jacobson Moore working with Olympia
• Leah Lewis as Sarah Yang,^[3] a first year associate at Jacobson Moore working with Olympia

Recurring

• Eme Ikwuakor as Elijah, an attorney at Jacobson Moore who was in a romantic relationship with Olympia
• Aaron Harris as Alfie Kingston, Madeline's genius grandson who is in charge of the family's technical operations
• Sam Anderson as Edwin Kingston, Madeline's husband
• Beau Bridges as Howard "Senior", a managing partner at Jacobson Moore, father of Julian and soon-to-be ex-father-in-law of Olympia. He guardedly supports Olympia's career and efforts to develop a new revenue stream for the firm, telling her that he believes that father-in-law is a forever role.
• Piper Curda as Kira, a woman who works at the Information technology (IT) Department of Jacobson Moore and Sarah's love interest
• Andrea Londo as Simone

Episodes

Kat Coiro also directs episodes 12, 14, 16, 18 and 19, the season finale.^[4]

Production

Development

On January 31, 2023, it was announced that a remake version of Matlock was in development, and Jennie Snyder Urman signed on to write a pilot episode to be aired by CBS. Urman is expected to executive produce alongside Joanna Klein, Eric Christian Olsen, and Kathy Bates.^[5] On May 9, 2023, the Matlock remake was given a series order. The series is developed by Urman.^[6] John Will and Kat Coiro were added as executive producers. Coiro also directed the pilot.^[7] Production companies involved with the series are Sutton Street, Cloud Nine, and CBS Studios.^[6] Matlock has been moved to the 2024–25 season due to strike-related production delays.^[8] It was later reported that it was a 18-episode order. On October 22, 2024, CBS renewed the series for a second season.^[9]

Casting

Upon the pilot order announcement, Bates was cast to star.^[5] Skye P. Marshall, Jason Ritter, David Del Rio, and Leah Lewis joined the main cast upon the series order announcement.^[6] On February 8, 2024, Beau Bridges was cast in a recurring capacity.^[10] In August 2024, Andrea Londo and Piper Curda joined the cast in recurring roles.^{[11] [12]}

On September 8, 2024, Bates has said that Matlock is to be her final role before retirement.^[13] On October 9, 2024, she later walked it back in a recent interview, saying that "I think that they got a bit confused."^[14]

Broadcast

Matlock premiered with a sneak peek on September 22, 2024, before its timeslot premiere on October 17 on CBS.^[15]

Reception

Critical response

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating with an average rating of 7.7/10, based on 24 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Case closed—this Matlock reboot is a winner thanks to the ever reliable Kathy Bates and the intriguing wrinkle it puts on the legendary series' original concept."^[16] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 73 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.^[17]

Ratings

Notes and References

1. Web site: CBS' Matlock Just Revealed Its Wild, Not-a-Reboot Twist — Grade the Premiere, Get Scoop on What's Next. Matt Webb. Mitovich. TVLine. September 22, 2024. October 21, 2024.
2. Kathy Bates breaks down that massive Matlock premiere twist . Entertainment Weekly . Wesley . Stenzel . September 22, 2024 . September 23, 2024 . en.
3. Web site: Felt . Klein . September 23, 2024 . New Matlock 2024 Show Cast & Characters Guide (Photos) . November 2, 2024 . The Direct . en.
4. Web site: Matlock Director on How Kathy Bates and Their CBS Hit Are Subverting the Age Trope. November 30, 2024. November 30, 2024. The Hollywood Reporter. Racha Penrice. Ronda.
5. Web site: Andreeva. Nellie. CBS Orders Pilots For 'The Good Wife' Spinoff 'Elsbeth' Starring Carrie Preston & 'Matlock' Reboot With Kathy. Deadline Hollywood. January 31, 2023. August 18, 2024. August 20, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240820203925/https://deadline.com/2023/01/cbs-the-good-wife-spinoff-elsbeth-carrie-preston-matlock-reboot-kathy-bates-w-the-pact-watson-cbs-1235246012/. live.
6. Web site: 'Matlock,' 'Good Wife' Spinoff 'Elsbeth,' and Damon Wayans & Damon Wayans Jr. Comedy Ordered to Series at CBS. Variety. BreAnna. Bell. May 9, 2023. August 18, 2024. August 18, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240818211920/https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/matlock-reboot-elsbeth-poppas-house-series-cbs-1235607934/. live.
7. Web site: White. Peter. 'Matlock', 'Elsbeth' & Wayans' Family Comedy 'Poppa's House' Ordered To Series At CBS. Deadline Hollywood. May 9, 2023. August 18, 2024. September 13, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240913023509/https://deadline.com/2023/05/matlock-elsbeth-wayans-comedy-poppas-house-series-order-cbs-1235361320/. live.
8. Web site: Andreeva. Nellie. Most New Broadcast Scripted Series Moving To 2024–25 Season Due To Strike-Related Production Delays. Deadline Hollywood. November 8, 2023. August 18, 2024. November 9, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231109000748/https://deadline.com/2023/11/new-broadcast-series-move-2024-25-season-strike-metlock-dr-wolf-doc-rescue-hi-surf-poppas-house-st-denis-1235597159/. live.
9. Web site: Matlock Renewed at CBS — The Fall's First New Show to Score a Season 2. TVLine. Matt. Mitovich. October 22, 2024. October 22, 2024.
10. Web site: Beau Bridges Joins CBS' 'Matlock' In Recasting. Deadline Hollywood. Nellie. Andreeva. Denise. Petski. February 8, 2024. September 26, 2024. September 13, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240913023611/https://deadline.com/2024/02/beau-bridges-matlock-cast-cbs-1235818628/. live.
11. Web site: Andrea Londo Joins CBS' 'Matlock' In Recurring Role. Deadline Hollywood. Denise. Petski. August 20, 2024. August 20, 2024. August 20, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240820160104/https://deadline.com/2024/08/andrea-londo-cast-matlock-cbs-1236044790/. live.
12. Web site: 'Matlock' Adds Piper Curda In Recurring Role. Deadline Hollywood. Denise. Petski. August 27, 2024. November 8, 2024. November 8, 2024. https://archive.today/20241108161800/https://deadline.com/2024/08/matlock-piper-curda-cast-recurring-1236050775/. live.
13. Web site: In 'Matlock,' Kathy Bates Takes One Last Case. Soloski. Alexis. The New York Times. September 8, 2024. September 22, 2024. September 22, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240922042805/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/08/arts/television/matlock-kathy-bates.html. live.
14. Web site: Kathy Bates Clarifies She's Not Retiring Amid Matlocks Success: 'I Would Love for This to Keep Going' (Exclusive). People. Brianne. Tracy. October 9, 2024. October 28, 2024.
15. Web site: CBS Fall Premiere Dates: 'Blue Bloods' Final Episodes, 'FBI' Trio, 'Matlock' Reboot, 'Survivor' & More. Deadline Hollywood. Erik. Pedersen. July 13, 2024. August 18, 2024. July 20, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240720161731/https://deadline.com/2024/07/cbs-fall-premiere-dates-2024-1236008913/. live.
16. matlock_2023. Matlock. tv. 1. October 25, 2024. y.
17. matlock-2024. Matlock. tv. 1. September 25, 2024. y.