‘Matlock’: Will We Ever Meet Matty’s Daughter Ellie in Flashbacks?

[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for Matlock Season 1 Episode 2, “Rome, in a Day.”]

Matty’s daughter is a major presence in CBS‘ Matlock, but she hasn’t been seen for tragic reasons. Kathy Bates’ Matty and her husband, Edwin (Sam Anderson), revealed painful memories of their daughter’s final months in the second episode of the series, which aired on Thursday, October 17 on CBS. Will we ever meet Ellie onscreen? Showrunner Jennie Snyder Urman tells TV Insider that Matty and Edwin’s daughter will make an appearance in flashback form this season.

Matlock stars Bates as the titular character, a brilliant septuagenarian who snags a job at a prestigious law firm under the guise of being a down-on-her-luck grandma in need of work after the death of her no-good husband. It’s true that Matty has a 14-year-old grandson to raise, but she’s far from strapped for cash. Madeline Matlock is actually Madeline Kingston, her husband is very much alive, and they’re a wealthy family with an intense secret.

Matty and Edwin’s daughter died of a drug overdose. With the help of their grandson, Alfie (Aaron Harris), the family is on a mission to avenge Ellie and all families impacted by the opioid epidemic. According to Matty, one of the top three lawyers at Jacobson Moore buried documents that would’ve gotten opioids off the market 10 years earlier. Matty’s determined to figure out who did it and put them in jail.

Ellie’s death is included in the elaborate disguise. As far as Matty’s colleagues know, her daughter died in a car crash. But in Episode 2, Matty revealed that she sensed something was “off” with Ellie about 6 months before her “first overdose,” implying she overdosed more than once on opioids before her death. We also learned the meaning of Matty and Alfie’s “MWBSP” motto: “Mom would be so proud.” It’s what they say to each other when they do good work in their investigation.

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Snyder Urman tells TV Insider that while this show is full of twists beyond those seen in the first two episodes, the story of Matty’s daughter is not something they’ll use to surprise viewers.

“We’re not really playing the daughter story for shock. It’s more on the emotional axis,” Snyder Urman says. “You’ll meet her. There’ll be flashbacks to what happened with her. I think there’s surprises along the way, but they’re not meant to be shock. Well, they might shock the system, but it’s more to really understand where Matty is now.”

While the daughter’s story is being handled with delicacy, surprises are still part of Matlock‘s DNA.

“Prepare to be surprised throughout the journey because we want those surprises to be part of the journey,” Snyder Urman explains. “And at the same time, we’re telling a very grounded story about grief, and at the same time, we’re telling a really fun story about what an older woman can accomplish.”

The Jane the Virgin creator also says that Matty is more prepared than anyone for whatever wrench might be thrown into the plan.

“Matty’s thought of contingencies, and she’s always ready and you will not know the extent to her preparations. She’s got some resources,” she says.

Those contingencies came in handy in Episode 2. Olympia (Skye P. Marshall) nearly caught Matty redhanded when showing up at Matty’s address with a food order she had intentionally left behind. The address turned out to be Matty’s apartment in the city, and she and Alfie used a security camera in the hallway to sneakily record Olympia as she typed in the passcode to her phone, unlocking the next obstacle in their search for the truth.

— Additional reporting by Kate Hahn

Matlock, Thursdays, 9/8c, CBS