In January 2024, Emmy- and Oscar-winning actress Kathy Bates was ready to hang ‘em up and call it quits on what had been an incredible 55-year career in Hollywood – but then she received a script.
It was the script for CBS‘ reboot of Matlock – one of the most popular mystery dramas of all time, starring Andy Griffith as defense attorney Ben Matlock from 1986 to 1995 – and she wasn’t about to turn it down.
The reboot is premiering later this month (on Sept. 22) and will later be available on Paramount+, but it will mark the end of an iconic career – at least that’s what she said in a recent New York Times interview.
“This is my last dance,” she said in the interview, which was published by NYT on Sunday (Sept. 8). She went on to talk about what enticed her about the script – as well as what enticed her about retirement.
“Everything I’ve prayed for, worked for, clawed my way up for, I am suddenly able to be asked to use all of it.” she said of Matlock – adding that she wasn’t too fond of the original series, but loved the new script.
As far as retirement, Bates said she sometimes gets ‘jealous of having this talent’ because she can’t ‘hold it back’ and just wants to live her life. “It becomes my life,” she said – and she doesn’t want that anymore.
Kathy Bates Putting an End to Her 55-Year Career
Kathy Bates graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1969 before moving out to New York City to pursue a career in acting. She started landing minor roles in 1970, but the industry was very tough on her.
By the 1980s, Bates had established herself as one of the finest stage actresses in the country – and was even nominated for a Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Play for her role in the play ‘night, Mother.’
But it wasn’t until the 1990 horror film Misery that she received her breakthrough – the role that won her an Academy Award for Best Actress and Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama).
She also won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress (Television) in 1996, for her role as Helen Kushnick in The Late Shift, and two Emmy Awards – one in 2012 for her role in Two and a Half Men, and another in 2014 for her role in American Horror Story: Coven. She was nominated for one Tony Award.
After more than 55 years of being in front of a camera, Kathy Bates is finally ready to yell cut on what has been an incredible career – and her role as Madeline Matlock in Matlock is the perfect way to go out.
Bates, 76, will be playing the role originally played by Andy Griffith – with her character being a brilliant septuagenarian who rejoins the workforce at a prestigious law firm, but is doubted because of her age.
The series was created by Jennie Snyder Urman and will feature Jason Ritter, Skye P. Marshall, and Beau Bridges – alongside Bates, of course – in what is expected to be a modern take on the original.
Here’s what Urman had to say about Bates’ character in a July interview with USA Today:
“At its deepest core, it’s a character study, a deep dive into the mind of Madeline Matlock, a fish out of water, a mastermind,” she said. “Just because you’re older doesn’t mean you can’t be a bad bi**h.”
We’re going to miss Kathy Bates and her ability to portray just about any character she’s given – but we’re certainly excited about her final project and can’t wait to watch the Matlock reboot in a few weeks!
