Kathy Bates Says Her Critics Choice Award For ‘Matlock’ Also Represents A Win For Broadcast TV: “It’s A Big Deal”

deadline.com:

Kathy Bates‘ win for Best Actress in a Drama Series at Friday night’s Critics Choice Awards was also a rare major win for broadcast TV, which is scarcely represented on the awards circuit these days, especially in drama categories. “It’s a big deal for me,” she told reporters backstage after her win for the CBS series Matlock. “When we did our pilot, I got an email from Amy Reisenbach, who is the head of the network, and I looked her up because I didn’t really know who she was, and I saw a picture of her…next to a headline that said, ‘Broadcast TV Is Not Dead.’“ In Matlock, Bates plays Madeline “Matty” Matlock, a brilliant septuagenarian who achieved success in her younger years and decides to rejoin the work force at a prestigious law firm where she uses her unassuming demeanor and wily tactics to win cases all while investigating a deeply personal secret of her own.

The series has been a ratings hit for CBS — so much so that it received a swift Season 2 renewal in October. All this to say, Reisenbach (with Bates’ help) has certainly proved her thesis that broadcast television still has a place in the current landscape. “This really is an award for [the network] for taking the opportunity to need to create such a wonderful show,” Bates continued. “I mean, it’s just been phenomenal.” Bates remained tight-lipped about what’s in store for the rest of Season 1, simply saying: “We’re going to really rock your socks off.” Over the course of her career, which spans more than five decades, Bates has certainly played a whole host of characters and is no stranger to roles she can’t necessarily relate to.