The inimitable Kathy Bates believes her time in front of the camera is coming to an end.
Bates, who gained worldwide fame for her unfailing role as the “Unsinkable” Molly Brown in 1997’s “Titanic,” announced she has committed to her final role on the big screen before putting a wrap on her 44-year career. The Oscar-winning actress will star in a reboot of the CBS series “Matlock,” though she told the New York Times earlier this week that an unhappy moment on the set of her last movie “soured” her on acting for good. As she called her agent to announce the news, Bates added that she would stick around for “Matlock” after reading the script.
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“It becomes my life,” she said. “Sometimes I get jealous of having this talent. Because I can’t hold it back and I just want my life.” According to the Daily Caller, Bates found herself alone at home, sobbing on the couch while reflecting on the way she had been mistreated during a previous film. Her all-consuming approach to becoming each character has taken a toll over the years, she added, but that the opportunity to flex all her acting chops in “Matlock” will be a rewarding final achievement. “This is my last dance,” she told the Times.
“Everything I’ve prayed for, worked for, clawed my way up for, I am suddenly able to be asked to use all of it,” she said. “And it’s exhausting.” She will play brilliant septuagenarian Madeline Matlock who rejoins the workforce at a prestigious law firm where she uses her unassuming demeanor and wily tactics to win cases and expose corruption from within. The show will premiere September 22nd on streaming service Paramount+.
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Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Bates, 76, has stretched the limits of her talent, effortlessly transitioning between tragedies and comedies while leaving indelible marks on her audiences. Less than a decade after “Titanic,” she turned up in NBC’s hit series “The Office” as a no-nonsense corporate overlord who tangles with Michael Scott, Steve Carrell’s eccentric office manager character. Other notable roles were taken by Bates in “Six Feet Under,” “Harry’s Law,” and “Disjointed.” She won her first Academy Award for Best Actress back in 1990 for Annie Wilkes in an adaptation of Stephen King’s “Misery.” She has been thrice nominated since then for Best Supporting Actress.
A catalogue of Bates’ best performances includes “Fried Green Tomatoes” (1991), “Dolores Claiborne” (1995), “The Waterboy” (1998), “Revolutionary Road” (2008), “The Blind Side” (2009), and “Midnight in Paris” (2011). She won her first Primetime Emmy for “Two and a Half Men,” and has been nominated for roles in “The Late Shift” (1996), “Annie” (1999), “Six Feet Under” (2003), “Warm Springs” (2005), “Harry’s Law” (2011–2012), “American Horror Story: Freak Show” (2014), and “American Horror Story: Hotel” (2015).
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