CBS is said to be laying down the law.
“Matlock” star David Del Rio has reportedly been fired from the Kathy Bates-led legal drama following a sexual assault allegation against him, per Entertainment Weekly.
After the alleged incident was first reported, CBS was said to have launched an internal investigation that ultimately concluded with Del Rio, 38, being booted from the show, according to the outlet.
The series, however, continued filming after Del Rio’s exit and will still take a previously planned hiatus after the current season’s first half concludes later this month.
As for Del Rio’s “Matlock” character Billy Martinez, he will reportedly be written out of future episodes – although sources confirmed to EW that he will still appear in episodes that were already completed before the incident was reported.
Other sources told Deadline that the alleged incident in question unfolded on Sept. 26 and involved Del Rio’s co-star, Leah Lewis (Sarah Franklin).
Lewis, 28, was said to have reported the purported incident on Oct. 2, which was the same day Del Rio was axed and escorted off the lot.
CBS Studios declined The Post’s request for comment, but confirmed that Del Rio has departed the series.
“Matlock” showrunner Jennie Snyder Urman, meanwhile, recently discussed Del Rio’s character in August and how he would have a more prominent role in the show’s second season, which kicks off Sunday, Oct. 12.
“I think of this show as a story about friendship romances, those people that come into your life that are maybe even more significant than your romantic partner, and it does come with certain challenges for other people in their lives,” Urman told EW a few weeks before Del Rio’s departure.
“Matty and Olympia have that, and Sarah and Billy unexpectedly started to really feel that towards each other, too,” she added regarding Bates’ character’s relationship with Skye P. Marshall’s and Del Rio’s with Lewis’.
The “Matlock” reboot is a gender-flipped remake of the original 1986 to 1995 legal drama series that starred Andy Griffith.
Bates, 77, stars in the titular role as Madeline “Matty” Matlock alongside Marshall, Lewis and Jason Ritter (Julian Markston).
The “Misery” Oscar winner previously claimed that she would retire from Hollywood after starring in the CBS reboot series, which premiered in September 2024.
“This is my last dance,” she told the New York Times last year.
“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 added. “And it’s exhausting.”
