Ready for more of one of last year’s best legal dramas? Academy Award winner Kathy Bates returns as Madeline “Matty” Matlock in Season 2 of CBS’s hit legal drama Matlock on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025.
We can’t wait to see where this fresh set of episodes takes us as Matty, Olympia and crew take on Jacobson Moore and the pharmaceutical industry. Here’s everything to know about the show to get ready for Season 2.
You can watch Matlock and other great legal drama shows right on DIRECTV! Don’t have DIRECTV yet? Fix that today!
When Does ‘Matlock’ Season 2 Come Out?
Matlock Season 2 will premiere on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025 on CBS at 8:30 p.m. ET to kick off CBS Premiere Week. But that’s not all: the second episode of the new season will air during the series’ usual timeslot on Thursday, Oct. 16 at 9 p.m. ET. Episodes will be released weekly on Thursdays after the initial premiere week.
Looking for other top shows to dig into this fall? We’ve got the full fall TV lineup right here.
Where to Watch ‘Matlock’
You can watch Matlock on CBS, or stream episodes on Paramount+.
Find your local CBS affiliate channel here.
What is ‘Matlock’ About?
Matlock is a legal and courtroom drama series that follows the eponymous Madeline “Matty” Matlock. Matlock, whose real name is Madeline Kingston, pretends to be a widowed, retired lawyer forced back into the field to make money after her husband’s gambling habits get them into financial trouble.
In reality, it’s all a cover: She’s really trying to infiltrate a law firm known for defending pharmaceutical companies so that she can investigate the opioid crisis and avenge the death of her daughter, who died of an overdose.
What Happened on ‘Matlock’ Season 1?
Matlock Season 1 followed Matty Matlock as she navigated maintaining her ruse and infiltrating the firm’s internal system to collect evidence against it while working high-profile cases with her team, led up by senior partner Olympia Lawrence. She puts her grandmotherly charm to use to win over the firm’s staff and remain unassuming and forms an uneasy alliance with Olympia.
By the end of the season, Matty has decided to return to law full-time, while Olympia, unbeknownst to Matty, has discovered both the opioid case evidence that she was looking for and who was responsible for hiding it: her soon-to-be-ex-husband Julian, the son of a managing partner of the firm.
Meanwhile, a mystery man (Niko Nicotera) claiming to be the father of Matty’s grandson Alfie shows up at her door.
What Is ‘Matlock’ Season 2 About?
Season 2 will likely pick up right where we left off: Matty and Olympia remain in a standoff over the opioid epidemic evidence, while Matty must now investigate the claims that Alfie’s supposed father has made, and navigate her changed family dynamic if they prove true.
Is ‘Matlock’ a Reboot?
Yep! The 2024 version of Matlock is a reboot of the original 1986 television series of the same name, which starred Andy Griffith. This iteration, notably, flipped the gender of the lead role, swapping out Griffith’s Ben Matlock for Bates’ Madeline Matlock.
The original Matlock series was wildly popular at the time and ran for nine seasons from 1986 to 1995 on NBC. and ABC (for the last three seasons).
‘Matlock’ Season 2 Cast
Here’s the cast of Season 2 of CBS’s Matlock:
Kathy Bates as Madeline “Matty” Matlock / Madeline Kingston: Presenting herself as a widow returning to the workforce as a lawyer, she’s actually Madeline Kingston, a secretly wealthy and out to avenge her daughter’s death by infiltrating a prestigious New York law firm to investigate a pharmaceutical cover-up.
Skye P. Marshall as Olympia Lawrence: A senior attorney at Jacobson Moore, the law firm that Matty is infiltrating. She’s Matty’s boss at the firm, and the two have a complicated, shifting relationship.
Jason Ritter as Julian Markston: Julian is the son of one of the firm’s managing partners and Olympia’s ex-husband. He has a high level of influence and power in the firm due to his father’s position.
David Del Rio as Billy Martinez: Billy is a young member of Olympia’s team who works closely with Matty.
Leah Lewis as Sarah Franklin: Another younger member of Olympia’s team, she admires Matty’s experience and prowess but is suspicious of her motives.
Beau Bridges as Howard “Senior” Markston: The big wig in charge of Jacobson Moore, Howard is Julian’s father and a top target of Matty’s investigation.
Aaron D. Harris as Alfie Kingston: Matty’s tech-whizz grandson.
Sam Anderson as Edwin Kingston: Matty’s husband. He’s believed to be dead but is actually secretly alive and aiding Matty.
Niko Nicotera as Rob: The man who showed up at Matty’s door and claimed to be Alfie’s father.
Watch ‘Matlock’ on DIRECTV
So, is Alfie’s alleged father who he says he is? What will become of the damning evidence Olympia has found?
You can find out by watching Matlock right on DIRECTV. Sign up today!
Looking for other top shows to dig into this fall? We’ve got the full fall TV lineup right here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who plays Madeline "Matty" Matlock in CBS's Matlock (2024)?
Academy Award winner Kathy Bates plays the lead role of Madeline Matlock/Kingston in Matlock.
Who played the original Matlock in the 1980s?
Andy Griffith played the role of Ben Matlock in the original series from the 80s and 90s.
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