Matlock's Skye P. Marshall Dishes on Playing a 'Giddy' Olympia Opposite Her Real-Life Husband

[Warning: The following contains spoilers for Thursday's episode of Matlock, "The Cavalry Isn't Coming." Read at your own risk!]

Love is in the air for Olympia Lawrence (Skye P. Marshall) onMatlock, and finally, it's not with someone who works at Jacobson Moore. Sparks fly in Thursday's episode, "The Cavalry Isn't Coming," when Olympia is introduced to AI expert Langston Wright, played by Marshall's real-life husband Edwin Hodge. Fans are treated only to the duo's meet-cute in "Cavalry," but Olympia's immediate reaction implies that we definitely haven't seen the last of Langston. Marshall is ready for Olympia to have a giddy, schoolgirl crush after the emotional labor she's had to carry for the past two seasons. She's even more excited to get to play that out with her actual husband. "He has a way of looking at me like a lion, and I turn into a gazelle," she teased to TV Guide when speaking about Langston and Olympia's on-screen introduction.  

But what will Julian (Jason Ritter) have to say about Olympia officially moving on? Marshall digs into that, and why she and Matty (Kathy Bates) are so ready to fight for Shae's (Yael Grobglas) freedom in the new episode. The actress reveals what she's most excited for in the upcoming Matlock Season 2 episodes, including the new romance and a new chapter for Olympia and Julian. 

ALSO READ: Matlock's Jason Ritter Reveals Julian's 'Biggest Struggle' Now That He Knows Matty's Secret

How have you tackled playing Olympia when she's stuck between Matty and Julian in this Wellbrexa case? 
Skye P. Marshall: There is this responsibility that Olympia has to give Julian permission to process. That is what I wanted to offer him because I knew it would take time for him to find it in his heart to be accountable in some way, form, or fashion. Matlock is on this mission. He is a piece of the puzzle, but he is not the whole puzzle. It wasn't difficult. I didn't feel like it was difficult. It just required me to facilitate a very uncomfortable conversation between two people that I love, but because I love them, I knew that they would find their way to the truth. Once you get to the truth, there's no turning back. That's going to reveal how either honorable your character is or how you are part of the problem. Olympia knew that Julian was an honorable man, or she would not have married him. Was she disappointed by the betrayal? One hundred percent, but that's not who he is in that moment of discovery. That is who he was 14 years ago. 

That's exactly what we got to see him do. Jason did such a beautiful job at the Kingston home when he came and saw Alfie. He had that moment between him and Matlock, and that's how we got to the other side. That's why in this episode, you see a little more light between Olympia and Julian. 

How would you define Olympia and Julian's relationship by the end of "The Cavalry Isn't Coming"?

Marshall: They were able to get back to a place they were in when they were happily married. They're packing lunches for their kids and running off to the office. The intimacy is no longer there, but the love remains. That's what makes the scenes between Olympia and Julian so light-hearted. It's sweet. It's a friendship. I would love to see more of that on television, what it's like on the other side of divorce, and that it can be healthy and compatible. You can still love each other and co-parent from a place of compassion and not performance. 

I read this book, The Obstacle Is the Way, and it's fantastic. I believe that when any two humans can get on the other side of an obstacle, it can make them stronger. You have to meet your maturity. You have to meet that moment and be able to sit in the discomfort of your own making. Julian did exactly that. Now that we're on the other side of it, I'm excited to see what they do because I've never had the opportunity to just be friends with Julian on Matlock.

This episode is about saving Shae, whom you would think Olympia would be happy to see gone from Jacobson Moore. What is driving Olympia to fight so hard for Shae here? 
Marshall: One of the attributes that Olympia and Matty share is that they fight for justice. There is no gray for the two of them, and their instincts are very sharp. They know that something is off here because that is not like Shae. Shae may be a lot of things, but she's not a criminal who would bribe a juror. That's just not who she is, so they go fight. They're fighters, and they are survivors. And Olympia is not a petty person. We saw in Season 1 when Shae took accountability. They are both very good at their jobs. They both need each other. Shae needs Olympia because the merger is happening, and she doesn't have a strong footing. Olympia needs to know whether she has the jury on her side. This is strictly business, and they respect each other. I don't believe that Olympia ever wanted Shae gone. There were definitely moments when she didn't want Shae on her case or on her team, but she has proven to be an asset, and I don't believe Olympia would just throw that asset away. Most importantly, she's not going to let Shae go to jail for something she didn't do. 

Olympia is also moving on romantically. What can you tease about this knee-wobble she gets from Langston, and what we can expect there?

Marshall: Edwin hid all his choices from me when it came to what he was going to do with Langston. He knew Olympia front to back because he loves me and he loves the show. I did not know what to expect with his creation of Langston. When he came around that corner, my knees did wobble because that's the man I married. I married him because he's so captivating. I married him because that smile has always turned me into sand in his hands, honey. He is a charmer. He's very charismatic, and he has a way of looking at me like a lion and I turn into a gazelle. 

We've been together for four years, which is not a long time, but I still remember that first year very clearly. He came in [to the scene] with that first-year energy. I felt like I was a little girl again. It was sweet. The directors, writers, and crew didn't know what I was feeling inside, but the camera doesn't lie. That's what the camera saw. That's what they picked up on, and that's the chemistry that I believe people will definitely find palpable when they watch the next episode. They're not going to care about any of the science we're talking about, and that was the goal.

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What is Olympia like in the giddy phase of a new romance? We've only seen her in very complicated romantic entanglements so far.
Marshall: It's something that a lot of, especially working women, experience. It's a constant negotiation between ambition and intimacy, independence and partnership. The complexity lies in the fact that both roles are deeply meaningful, and neither should require diminishment. Olympia has always found herself having to choose one over the other, rather than redefining what success looks like on her own terms, all while being in love. That's a scary place for a woman who just came out of a divorce, caring for her two young children, and taking down an entire opioid epidemic. Where do you find the space for love and intimacy? It can either be an opportunity or it could present itself as a distraction. 

That's the thing I had to negotiate constantly. You get to see even with Matty in this episode, where she's not present for Edwin and their 50th anniversary. She had to choose, and she chose Shae of all people. That's hurtful, and you do hurt people on your way to success. Sometimes it is the people closest to you. That is something that I don't believe Olympia will ever take lightly. But it feels good because it's a rarity that somebody would have her weak in the knees. It's an aura and a chemical reaction that has to happen. You can't just be attractive for Olympia. You have to hook her quick…and that's exactly what happens when Langston comes around the corner at the end of this episode. I cannot wait to see what they do with these two characters. I give them permission. Take it as far as you like! It's rare to give that permission to a network, but Edwin and I are just like, "Let us play! Let us cook! Let us do what we do best!" 

Matlock continues Thursdays at 9/8c on CBS. Episodes are available the next day on Paramount+.