Kathy Bates Was Ready to Retire Before ‘Matlock’ Script

Kathy Bates was ready to retire after a bad experience on a movie set. The script for 'Matlock' changed her mind, but she insists this is the end for her.

Kathy Bates has had an illustrious and decorated career. With over 100 acting credits to her name, Bates has done just about everything there is to do in the acting world. Now, she’s ready to retire, but not just yet. Bates’ latest role in the remake of Matlock is set to be her last. The script actually came across her desk after she had decided to retire.

Kathy Bates is retiring after ‘Matlock’; she almost retired before the series ever happened

Kathy Bates will appear in Matlock as Madeline Matlock. The series will premiere on CBS in late September. While Kathy Bates is committed to seeing the series through, she’s sure this will be her last role. When the series is over, she’ll officially retire.

Bates told The New York Times that Matlock almost didn’t happen either. The Misery star revealed she was ready to retire after a less-than-stellar experience on a movie set. She even told her agent she was done. They did not agree. Instead, they sent a script a few weeks after she said she was ready to retire.

The idea of the show didn’t move Bates initially, she said. She wasn’t looking for anything in the acting world, but she certainly wasn’t seeking a procedural reboot of a show she was never particularly fond of. Still, she read the script. In the end, Bates agreed to take on Matlock because the script called to her. She insists that after the series is over, she won’t be entertaining anything else.

Bates didn’t reveal what role had her ready to retire before Matlock came along. Bates has appeared in too many movies in the last couple of years to safely predict which movie set had her ready to call it a day. She appeared in two films in 2023 and three in 2024, including Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.

In some ways, ‘Matlock’ was Andy Griffith’s final role, too

Bates has made it clear that Matlock will be her final role. If Bates does retire at the end of the series, she’ll have something in common with the actor who starred in the original Matlock, well, sort of. While Andy Griffith never came out and revealed the show would be his last, it was his last starring role in a TV series. Andy Griffith was already a massive star when Matlock came across his desk. He signed on and spent a decade portraying Ben Matlock.

After the series wrapped in 1995, Griffith went on to appear in TV movies, and he took on guest roles in several shows. He also lent his voice to several projects. Still, he did not star in another TV series again. Griffith’s final acting credit came in 2009. He portrayed Grandpa Joe in Play the Game. The movie also starred Marla Sokoloff, Paul Campbell, Doris Roberts, and Liz Sheridan. Griffith died in 2012. He was 86.