Kathy Bates is sharing a major Matlock revelation.
The 76-year-old acting icon, who stars in CBS’ Matlock reboot, confessed in a new interview that she didn’t watch the original series during the ’80s and ’90s, which starred Andy Griffith as the titular character.
🎬SIGN UP for Parade’s Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox🎬
“I didn’t watch it. Everybody always asked me that—did I watch the show?” Bates explained during her interview with Billy Bob Thornton as part of Variety‘s “Actors on Actor’s” series.
“I watched a couple [of episodes] to see what I could get out of it, but our show is just so different,” Bates explained.
The Oscar-winning actress did note, however, that the reboot series was initially meant to have much stronger ties to the original.
View this post on Instagram
“I heard, originally, they wanted to make [my character] Andy Griffith’s great-great-granddaughter. So she’d be 30-something,” Bates revealed.
Ultimately, the reboot’s creator Jennie Snyder Urman began brainstorming and eventually, “it came to her that she wanted to write something about older women [and] feeling invisible.”
As a result, the new Matlock series was born—and Bates’ fans are eternally grateful.
“She’s the light of the show! 💝” one of her fans wrote on Instagram, while another called Bates simply “brilliant” in the hit show.
“Excellent show. She’s an icon,” added another.
Related: Kathy Bates Fans Jump to Her Defense After Lackluster Appearance