He was on the case.
Jason Ritter stars in the CBS legal drama “Matlock,” which follows Madeline “Matty” Matlock (Kathy Bates), a widowed and inexperienced ex-lawyer who works at the law firm Jacobson & Moore. The show is a reboot of the original “Matlock” starring Andy Griffith, which aired from 1986 to 1995.
“Matlock” aired its first episode as a sneak peek in September, snaring over 10 million viewers. The premiere of the regular time slot shows on Friday, October 17 (9 pm on CBS).
“I couldn’t be more excited,” Ritter, 44, told The Post, referring to the success of his first show.
Ritter, who is married to “Yellowjackets” star Melanie Lynskey and shares a 5-year-old daughter with her, added, “It reminds me of taking my son to kindergarten. You’re like, ‘yeah, me think he’s awesome, but I hope the other kids like him!’ That same feeling, where you go from your little bubble to the world. So, it’s great to see that other people enjoy (‘Matlock’) as much as I do.
As the first episode revealed – spoiler alert – there is a twist.
Madeline pretends to be an old lady who needs work to earn money. But really, he wants to work at a law firm because he believes that Julian (Ritter), his ex-wife, Olympia (Skye P. Marshall), or his father, Senior (Beau Bridges), are hiding documents. which is not directly related to his daughter’s death and he wants to expose the culprit.
“When I auditioned for it, I didn’t realize about the twist until after I got the part and I read the script,” said Ritter.
“I don’t think I stood up when I read the script. I was sitting on a chair in the dining room and I couldn’t believe what was happening, I was so excited, I stood up…I had the same feeling of hearing the last click at the top of the roller coaster, going, ‘oh boy!’”
He added, “It’s also nice because the three people who are the main suspects are all very important, unlike the 3 unknown people. They are members of the same family.”
Ritter, the son of actress Nancy Morgan and the late John Ritter, said he related to Julian, in part, because the character also worked in the same industry as his father.
“There’s a lot of Julian’s character that I shouldn’t have. Also, he has a very contentious relationship with his father, and I love my father,” Ritter said.
John Ritter died in 2003 at the age of 54 from a thoracic aortic dissection.
Jason added that he “understands” Julian’s concern about what his friends think.
“Imposter syndrome… I know it all too well.”
He added that he was most related to Julian’s “family stuff.”
“He obviously wants to be a good lawyer, he wants to make money and all those things, but at the top of his list he wants to be a good father.”
Ritter said the hardest part of the role was not being a fanboy at Bates.
“The biggest challenge for me was trying to stop myself from going in and going, ‘This is real, I can’t believe I’m talking to Kathy Bates!’ I have loved him for years and have been impressed by many of his performances.
Ritter shared that she needs to focus on “staying present in the scene and not floating out of my body and saying, ‘That’s cool! She’s awesome!'”
As “Matlock” continues to unfold, Ritter said there will be many revelations and plot twists.
“This is a company with a lot of secrets. It’s really fun to peel back all the layers and see what’s so disgusting underneath.
