David Del Rio, who portrayed a young lawyer on the popular CBS procedural “Matlock,” has left the television series shortly before the premiere of its second season.
CBS confirmed his departure but declined to comment further.
“Matlock,” which stars Kathy Bates, is a reboot of the series about a folksy lawyer that ran from 1986 to 1995 with Andy Griffith in the lead role. Del Rio played Billy Martinez, a first-year associate at the law firm Jacobson Moore, in all 19 episodes of the reboot’s first season.
It was the biggest acting role for Del Rio, 38, a regular cast member in the short-lived shows “Maggie” and “The Baker and the Beauty.” He also performed on Broadway in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “In the Heights.”
A person with knowledge of the details surrounding Del Rio’s departure said it came after CBS had conducted an investigation, but the person would not say what the investigation was about. Del Rio’s character will be written out of the series.
“Matlock” was the third-most-watched broadcast series last season, according to Nielsen, averaging 16 million viewers an episode on CBS and Paramount+. It trailed “Tracker,” another CBS series, and the new ABC procedural “High Potential.”
Season 2 of “Matlock” begins on Sunday.
Matt Stevens is a Times reporter who writes about arts and culture from Los Angeles.
The post ‘Matlock’ Actor Leaves Series After CBS Investigation appeared first on New York Times.
