As the 2024 TV schedule continues to draw to a close, it’s a good time to look back on the new hits that we’ll be seeing more of in the future. Of course the subject of CBS’ Matlock was going to come up in that respect, even though when you really think about it, the Kathy Bates-starring legal dramedy is kinda weird. It may be madness, but there's method in it, as hiding that initial premiere twist only showed how important it is to showrunner Jennie Urman's new take.
How CBS Hide Matlock’s Big Twist In Plain Sight
Slight spoiler alert for anyone who hasn't watched the pilot or any of the recent ads for Matlock! Matty Matlock (Kathy Bates) isn't who she says she is. Rather, she's a shrewd lawyer who's trying to uncover the big bad at law firm Jacobson & Moore, using the Andy Griffith character's name as a disguise to infiltrate their ranks.
Discussing Matlock’s huge pilot twist in the context of the marketing, CBS’ Chief Marketing Officer Mike Benson spoke with Vulture about why that mind-blowing moment needed to land the way it did. As he walked through the strategy behind the beginning of Kathy Bates’ character's clever ruse, Benson laid out the scenario:
The thing that I knew is that I didn’t want to give away the twist, but I wanted to promise a twist. So the best way to do that was actually to twist the campaign. And that’s really what we set out to do: Create marketing that would get people to say, ‘Wait, there’s something else going on here. Is it Kathy? Is it the show?’ The idea really stemmed out of the fact that Kathy Bates is not the Matlock you’d expect. In fact, there’s something much more deceptive going on here. So the goal was to create something that was provocative, to build on the idea that there’s some deception going on, and to create a bigger mystery—but certainly not give anything away.
Mike Benson, Vulture
Much as Mr. Benson and the marketing team had intended, I was among the potential viewers that scratched their head after seeing the first trailer for Matlock. The line "Matlock, like the old TV show" was intriguing, but also caused my brow to furrow every time I heard it. And yet, the twist itself was still secure behind its veil of secrecy.
Teasing that point for several months was a rather genius move, as was the gap between Matlock's early pilot preview and its second episode. Now that the jig is up and we know we're actually following a lawyer who used the Andy Griffith series as a cover to avenge her late daughter’s death, that preview that's been selling the show hits a bit differently, as you'll see below:
Knowing what we know about the double agent story that Matlock has been engaging in, the fact that this first ad only showed off the Matty Matlock persona at work is quite smart. It was just enough to put the audience on the hook for the big reveal, without spelling it out.
And if you want to know more about why this game of mistaken identity was the one the CBS network darling went for, there's a good reason for that as well.
Matlock’s Surprising Reinvention Is Pretty Weird For A ‘Reboot’
As CBS’ early Matlock Season 2 renewal promises more fun with selling this series to the public, the thematic push that uses this legendary multi-network TV series as more of a reference than an inspiration will keep us all on our toes. By choosing to tip the hat to the southern lawyer of TV past without being beholden to its original characters and story, brand recognition and the reimagining craze came together to create a certified hit.
However, looking at this first year hit, we are watching a show with the Matlock branding that acknowledges that first show’s existence. Even that weirdness had a good reason backing its existence, as shared by Mike Benson in this same interview. Benson shared this rationale:
We certainly would never set out to disparage what Matlock was, but this is a wholly different show. What [showrunner] Jennie Urman envisioned was something that has the name ‘Matlock,’ but the reason for the name of the show has a twist behind it. So while we knew there were audiences out there who knew what Matlock is, we didn’t really want to actually utilize that. We didn’t want to go out and leverage the strength of the old Matlock, per se. It was really about, ‘If you knew the show, fine.’ We wanted to create something that could stand on its own and had nothing to do with the old IP.
Mike Benson, Vulture
It's a pretty gutsy move to think that people expecting that OG Matlock charm wouldn’t be offended. And yet, without that final curveball, we wouldn’t have the ingenious Matlock revamp that fans are currently enjoying.
Given the fact that this move has led to success with newer audiences (as well as prompted Kathy Bates’ reaction to Matlock’s success roping in the Boomer audience), this seems to be the rare hit that’s got everyone talking. And when you think about it like that, the weirdness kind of fades away to make way for admiration. Not to mention, good old Ben Matlock himself would probably be smiling at its ingenuity as well.
Those of you who want to become part of the fanbase that keeps this show in the conversation on a weekly basis, fear not! New episodes air every Thursday at 9 p.m. ET on CBS, with a Paramount+ subscription allowing you to catch any cases you've missed on broadcast TV.