Kathy Bates Reveals ‘Matlock’ Is Her ‘Last Dance’ & She’s Ready to Retire
Kathy Bates is ready to walk away from the spotlight following her lead role in CBS‘ upcoming Matlock reboot, premiering on Sunday, September 22.
In a new interview with the New York Times, published Sunday (September 8), the 76-year-old Oscar and Emmy-winning actress said of her upcoming role, “This is my last dance.”
Bates revealed she almost retired from acting last year after a bad experience on a film shoot (she didn’t specify the production). However, she changed her mind after her agents sent her the script from Matlock, a gender-flipped reimagining of the classic mystery legal drama. Having faced injustice earlier in her career, Bates said the idea intrigued her.
“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 the series. “And it’s exhausting.”
Bates won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Annie Wilkes in the 1990 thriller Misery. She also received Oscar nominations for her roles in Primary Colors (1998), About Schmidt (2002), and Richard Jewell (2019).
On television, Bates won her first Primetime Emmy Award for her guest role in the ninth season of Two and a Half Men and her second for her portrayal of Delphine LaLaurie in American Horror Story: Coven. She also received Emmy nominations for her roles in The Late Shift, Annie, Six Feet Under, Warm Springs, Harry’s Law, American Horror Story: Freak Show, and American Horror Story: Hotel.
Her most recent appearances were in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret and Netflix’s A Family Affair, opposite Nicole Kidman.
Speaking of acting as a whole, Bates shared, “It becomes my life. Sometimes I get jealous of having this talent. Because I can’t hold it back, and I just want my life.”
The 18-episode Matlock premieres on September 22 and follows Madeline Matlock (Bates), a brilliant septuagenarian who achieved success in her younger years and decides to rejoin the workforce at a prestigious law firm, where she uses her unassuming demeanor and wily tactics to win cases and expose corruption from within.
In addition to Bates, the series stars Beau Bridges, Jason Ritter, Skye P. Marshall, Leah Lewis, and David Del Rio.
Matlock, Season Premiere, Sunday, September 22, CBS
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