The reboot of Matlock has been rocked by scandal following the abrupt firing of actor David Del Rio.
The 38-year-old was removed from the CBS drama after being accused of sexual assault by his co-star Leah Lewis, and now his wife Katherine Del Rio, has entered the conversation, using social media to call Lewis “disturbing.”
Us Weekly confirmed that Katherine, 34, posted an image of Lewis to her Instagram Stories on Thursday, October 9. In bold text over Lewis’ face, she wrote: “This is the most disturbing human being I have ever met.”
The post came hours after the outlet confirmed that David had been dropped from the series. Katherine’s post also followed reports that Lewis had briefly followed her Instagram account before disappearing from her followers list, suggesting she had been blocked.
The alleged incident between David and Lewis took place on September 26 and was reported to CBS on October 2. The studio launched an investigation immediately, and David was “fired and escorted off the lot the same day the alleged assault was reported.”
While CBS has not released a formal statement, multiple outlets confirmed that his character, first-year associate Billy Martinez, will be written out of the show.
Production on Matlock season 2 has not halted. The series, which stars Kathy Bates in the lead role, had already completed filming the first half of the season before the allegations came to light. Scripts are being adjusted to account for David’s sudden absence, and the show will enter a pre-planned hiatus after this week before resuming production after Thanksgiving.
Lewis, 28, addressed the situation on her own Instagram Story the same day news of David’s firing became public. She posted a photo of herself embracing her mother alongside a message of gratitude and resilience. “Mom is here, we’re moving forward in love and strength. I’m in good hands,” she wrote. “Thank you to everybody for any kind of support and care. Truly, we’re moving forward in strength. Key word, strength. Please, let that be the take away.”
Representatives for David have not issued further comment as of press time.
The Matlock reboot premiered in 2024 and reimagines the classic courtroom series with a new story. Bates stars as Madeline “Matty” Matlock, who poses as a lawyer at Jacobson Moore to uncover the truth about her daughter’s death from an opioid overdose. Lewis’ Sarah Franklin and David’s Billy Martinez were both written as first-year associates working alongside Matty at the firm.
The second season of Matlock is scheduled to air beginning Sunday, October 12, at 8:30 p.m. ET, with a second episode set for Thursday, October 16, at 9 p.m. ET. Despite David’s removal, the network plans to move forward with the season.
If you or someone you know has been affected by sexual assault, help is available. You can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 or visit rainn.org for confidential support.