CBS's Cupertino, Matlock's replacement, more than doubles pilot audience with delayed viewing

Centre · 1CBS's new legal drama Cupertino, which took the place of Matlock on the network's fall schedule, more than doubled its pilot audience once delayed viewing was counted, according to Collider citing Nielsen ratings. 1 Centre · 1The pilot drew 3.19 million live and same-day viewers; that rose to 7.17 million in the later figures, and to 10.58 million after an encore airing on Sunday, October 11. 1 Centre · 1Collider says the show was not a runaway hit like Matlock, which averaged over 10 million viewers, but that it appears to be benefiting from on-demand and delayed viewing. 1

Centre · 2Cupertino was created by Robert and Michelle King, the creators of The Good Wife, and follows lawyers Michael (Mike Colter) and Olivia (Rachel Keller) as they build a practice taking on Silicon Valley companies; it airs Thursdays at 10 pm. 1 2 Centre · 2Both outlets report that critics have been very positive, with a 100% Rotten Tomatoes critics' score; Screen Rant adds that the audience score is 78%. 1 2 Centre · 2The two outlets give different accounts of why Matlock is off the schedule: Collider says Season 3 was pushed to next year, while Screen Rant says it moved to mid-season 2027 for a creative reset after a major behind-the-scenes scandal. 1 2

Centre · 1Screen Rant, in an opinion piece, says the show's AI and tech-ethics storylines feel like a documentary, citing an episode in which the lawyers discover a client named Bo is a self-learning artificial general intelligence model seeking to sue its creator. 2 Centre · 1Collider also notes that Episode 5, "Celeste", involves a class-action suit against an AI training company over wage and overtime abuse, and that CBS announced a special airing on Sunday, November 8, with Episode 6 at 8 pm followed by two encores. 1