Yes, Matlock Season 3 is officially confirmed. CBS renewed the Kathy Bates legal drama on January 22, 2026, as part of a sweeping 10-show renewal announcement. Season 3 is slated for the 2026-2027 broadcast season, expected to premiere in fall 2026. Season 2, a 16-episode run, was still airing its second half when the renewal dropped, making it one of the earliest pickups CBS announced all cycle.
If you’ve been watching Matty outmaneuver everyone at Jacobson Moore, you already know this show earns every renewal it gets. The writing is sharp, Kathy Bates is doing career-best work in her 70s, and the Wellbrexa conspiracy has real emotional weight behind it. What follows breaks down everything confirmed about Season 3, including details most recaps quietly skip over.
When Does Matlock Season 3 Premiere?
Matlock Season 3 will premiere in fall 2026 on CBS, following the same seasonal pattern as both previous seasons. Season 1 debuted September 22, 2024, Season 2 premiered October 12, 2025, and CBS has not yet announced an exact date for Season 3. The show could open on a Sunday night as Season 2 did, before settling into its Thursday 9/8c timeslot. Paramount+ will carry next-day streaming.
Why Was Matlock Renewed So Early?
CBS typically announces renewals in May, so January was unusually early. The network held most of its lineup through February 2026 to clear space for NBC’s Olympics coverage, then used early renewals as a goodwill gesture to audiences. Matlock earned the pickup partly because it ranks as Thursday night’s No. 1 entertainment program on CBS and finished Season 1 as broadcast television’s top new series overall.
What Are the Ratings for Matlock Season 2?
Season 2 averages a 0.28 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 4.85 million live-plus-same-day viewers. That is down 24% in the demo and 21% in total viewers compared to Season 1. However, the Season 2 premiere pulled nearly 12 million multiplatform viewers in its first week, a figure that actually beat Season 1’s launch. CBS weights streaming and DVR heavily, which is why the show stays safe despite traditional demo softness.
Who Is Returning for Matlock Season 3?
Kathy Bates and Skye P. Marshall are expected back as Madeline Matlock and Olympia Lawrence. Jason Ritter, Leah Lewis, Beau Bridges, Sam Anderson, and Aaron D. Harris round out the core ensemble. No official Season 3 cast list exists yet. Recurring players Justina Machado and Niko Nicotera are also likely back. Ritter’s real-life wife, Melanie Lynskey, made a surprise guest appearance in Season 2 and could return.
What Happened to David Del Rio?
David Del Rio, who played associate Billy Martinez, was fired in October 2025 following an internal CBS investigation into an alleged sexual assault. Del Rio has denied the allegations, and CBS later reopened the investigation. His final on-screen episode was Season 2 Episode 7, which aired December 4, 2025. Episode 8 wrote Billy out via a phone call revealing his partner Claudia had a miscarriage and he was stepping away to grieve, a notably quiet exit for a series regular.
What New Characters Are Joining the Cast?
Sarah Wright Olsen and Henry Haber joined Matlock mid-Season 2, debuting in Episode 9 when the show returned from hiatus on February 26, 2026. Wright Olsen plays Gwen, an efficiency expert hired to analyze Jacobson Moore, and Haber plays Hunter, a bro-ish associate from the firm’s floater pool. Additionally, Edwin Hodge, who is Skye P. Marshall’s actual husband, joined as Langston, a charming latecomer who reunites the real-life couple on screen.
What Will the Matlock Season 3 Plot Focus On?
Showrunner Jennie Snyder Urman has confirmed the Wellbrexa storyline wraps by the end of Season 2, meaning Season 3 will chart new territory. The central premise, Matty using a fake identity to expose the firm that buried evidence connected to her daughter’s opioid death, has been evolving. Season 3 is expected to deepen Matty and Olympia’s partnership now that Julian knows their secret, shifting the show’s power dynamics significantly heading into the new cycle.
Who Created Matlock and Who Runs the Show?
Jennie Snyder Urman created and showruns Matlock, developing it as a gender-flipped reimagining of the original Andy Griffith series from 1986. She executive produces alongside Joanna Klein, Eric Christian Olsen, Kat Coiro, and Kathy Bates herself. The show is produced by Sutton Street, Cloud Nine, and CBS Studios, and films at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles despite being set in New York City. The pilot was shot in Toronto before production relocated.
Has Kathy Bates Won Awards for Matlock?
Bates earned a 2025 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Season 1, a notable achievement for a broadcast procedural in an era when streaming dominates awards conversations. She has also received Golden Globe recognition for the role. The show holds a 100% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 24 reviews, which is an unusually strong press reception for a CBS legal drama targeting an older demographic.
Where Can You Watch Matlock?
Matlock airs Thursdays at 9/8c on CBS, with new episodes streaming the following day on Paramount+. In Canada, it airs on Global and streams on StackTV. Australian viewers can catch it on Channel Ten and Paramount+ Australia. Full seasons of Matlock are available on Paramount+ for subscribers, making it one of the more accessible CBS shows for cord-cutters who want to catch up before Season 3 arrives in fall 2026.
The Bottom Line on Matlock Season 3
Matlock is one of the steadiest bets on broadcast television right now, and that is not something you can say lightly in 2026. What makes this show worth tracking beyond the ratings is the architecture underneath it. Urman built a procedural with a genuine serialized spine, the kind of construction that gives a Season 3 real room to evolve rather than just repeat. Matty’s secret is no longer a secret. That changes everything about where this story goes next.
