when Skye P. Marshall observed initially MatlockI had no interest in the show because most young people run away from the same thing their parents entertain them with. Little did he know that he would one day join the new iteration of the beloved and classic TV show after growing up to pursue acting.
Marshall’s Introduction to Matlock it included listening to the show from a distance when their parents tuned in on weekdays. Now, he’s teamed up with Hollywood icon Kathy Bates to deliver a fresh and exciting take on one of TV’s beloved legal dramas.
“I was very familiar with the brand of Matlockand I knew it was the most successful legal procedural drama of its time,” he told Blavity’s Shadow and Act. “When I opened my phone one day while I was unemployed, I saw Deadline posted (in a) headline, “CBS, Matlock, Kathy Bates.” That was enough for me to look for this script and I asked my director, “Have you read the Matlock script? Can you get your hands on Matlock’s script? I just want to see One, is it great? Second, what is Kathy Bates doing, because I’m a huge fan of Kathy Bates. And three, could there be something in the script for me? I’ll take anything’”.
How did Skye P. Marshall land the role?
After reviewing the script and stumbling upon her character, Olympia Lawrence, Marshall revealed that this role was made specifically for her.
“All of a sudden, my stomach dropped, my pulse started racing and my palms were sweating. My body knew this was for me,” Marshall said. “Before I even got into the depth of the script, I was having a physical reaction to it. It was like God was calling me to pay attention. I got that physical reaction as nervousness, and I think we’ve been conditioned to believe that when our body feels that burning desire and starts shaking, we’ve been programmed to believe that it means we’re not ready, we’re unable, we’re not prepared Like when you’re about to have a great conversation or go on a first date, we call it butterflies in the stomach. It is our body provoking us that here is an opportunity to tap into our highest potential, and our body, this fear, is showing us that we are ready to fight for something. It’s not really for flying.”
“At that point, I thought, this is my body getting ready to fight for something, and I decided I’m going to do whatever I can to have a chance,” he added.
After filming a video of herself and sending it to the show’s creator, Jennie Snyder Urman, it wasn’t long before Marshall landed an audition and a spot on the show as Bates’ right-hand woman. The moment was a dream come true for the actor, and the character Olympia is a testament to the power of representation of black women like her.
“As soon as I started reading the script for the first episode Matlockand I was introduced to this very well-written, complex character named Olympia Lawrence, I realized that Olympia is for the people,” Marshall said. “Olympia is for the culture. It’s not your high-end law firm and prestigious regular in New York City, designed for socialites and millionaires who can afford it, she is very intentional about the clients she takes on, and as you will see throughout the season, most of her clientele are several that you don’t know they can afford it, but it can bring the money to the company by settling a class-action suit.Seeing a lawyer on prime-time TV who is very intentional about who he represents, and why it’s the people who don’t have the guts voices or the big wallets, it’s the people who have been victimized or mistreated at work or in relationships or wrongfully imprisoned, that the city just wants to throw in a public defender – he’ll step in and bring his range qualifications high school, his law degree, and Jacobson’s reputation. Moore so these people can get justice.”
This is not your original Matlock
Although many call this a Matlock reboot, Marshall notes that it is a reimagining of the TV show that has lived in the hearts of many since its 1986 premiere.
“We’re adding hope to that legacy,” Marshall said. “I think this is the most common emotion that we all feel as human beings. hope We hope our children turn out great. We hope we put up a good fight. We hope we are defending ourselves. Hopefully we’ve created some healthy boundaries. Let’s hope we don’t get hit by a car, right? In this show, the stakes are very high for each character because we’re all hoping for something great. And our protagonist, Kathy Bates, playing Madeline Matlock hoping to get justice for her daughter, and that overall mystery, is what the original Matlock he didn’t have it, but he will bring the legacy of Matlock showing how, like Andy, Matlock he fights constantly and won’t stop until he wins.
“Matlock he just takes it a little too far, way beyond what Andy Griffith ever did,” he continued. “But I think that’s the best part of reimagining the series and not rebooting it. We’re reimagining it. And (once you watch), you’ll understand that Madeline definitely isn’t Matlock in the way we expect.”
Matlock currently airs Thursdays on CBS at 9pm ET/PT.
