Matlock appeared to poke fun at the sudden departure of David Del Rio’s character in its midseason premiere Thursday night.
Del Rio was fired from the CBS legal drama last year after facing an allegation of sexual assault involving his co-star, Leah Lewis.
The series starring Kathy Bates as the eponymous lawyer, currently in its second season, addressed the absence of Del Rio’s first-year associate, Billy Martinez, in the latest episode.
It sees Sarah (Lewis) and Matty (Bates) meet with Gwen Easton (Sarah Wright-Olsen), an HR representative from Lamar and Olson, a law firm merging with Jacobson Moore.
While taking notes on the firm’s staff, Gwen asks, “Where is Billy Martinez?”
Sarah responds, “Out sick. Very, very sick. Vomiting, and he —”
“And we’ve got him covered,” Matty interjects.
Gwen then jokes about firing Del Rio's character.
“Yay, so no need for him to return!” she says. “Job eliminated.”
After an awkward pause, Gwen adds, “Kidding again! It was nice to meet you two.”
The Independent has contacted Del Rio’s representative for comment.
Both Lewis, 29, and Del Rio, 38, play first-year associates at Jacobson Moore in the series. Their characters are in separate relationships.
Del Rio exited Matlock in October after CBS launched an investigation into an incident involving him and Lewis. Neither actor has commented publicly on the situation, though Lewis shared a post on Instagram the day after the firing was reported in the media.
“Mom is here, we’re moving forward in love and strength,” she captioned her photo of her and her mother. “I’m in good hands. Thank you to everybody for any kind of support and care. Truly, we’re moving forward in strength. Key word, strength.”
Del Rio, who is married, made his television debut in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2008. His other television credits include episodes of Resident Advisors, Grease: Live, Search and Destroy, The Baker and the Beauty, Mateo Garcia, The Good Doctor and Maggie.
The actor last appeared in the December 4 episode, “Prior Bad Acts.” In the following installment — the season 2 midseason finale, “Call It a Christmas Gift” — Billy takes a “personal day” and does not appear on screen. Instead, his colleague Sarah (Leah Lewis) speaks with him by phone, during which he reveals that his girlfriend, Claudia (Bella Ortiz), has suffered a miscarriage — a development suggesting Billy would be stepping back from his duties at Jacobson Moore.
Last week, it was reported that CBS had reopened its investigation into Del Rio after he presented new evidence, but stood by its decision to fire him.
Del Rio’s attorney Shawn Holley told TMZ: “The book is far from closed.”
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