‘The Pitt’ and ‘Matlock’ Share This Talented Scene-Stealer
Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for both The Pitt Season 1 and Matlock Season 1.
Procedurals have never gone away, but in just this past year two new titles have brought the dramas back with a twist. The Pitt is a medical show with a high-octane premise in setting each episode over an hour of a 15-hour shift. Matlock updates the original beyond a gender-swap lead role when a larger mystery carries over from the episodic legal cases. While both are very different from each other, these shows cherish the nostalgic structure of procedurals that invite guest stars on to keep you glued to the screen.
At the top of the main cast are Noah Wyle and Kathy Bates, who are a pleasure to watch in their respective shows. But among the other doctors and nurses in The Pitt, or the lawyers and clients in Matlock, is a scene-stealer they both share. Ayesha Harris is not a name many audiences may know just yet, but odds are they have spotted her in supporting roles that make her stand out every time she’s on-screen. Appearing in Glamorous and Daisy Jones & The Six, Harris has done a 2024-25 TV run, grabbing your attention as a doctor saving lives and a grieving mother put on the stand.
Who Does Ayesha Harris Play in ‘Matlock’?
Harris’ screen time in Matlock is limited, but her role is critical to Olympia (Skye P. Marshall) and Matty. Although the latter could be the more interesting story thread to watch, Matty take down a law firm she holds responsible for the opioid crisis and the drug overdose death of her daughter, many of the standalone cases have solid cases you want to see won. In Episode 6 “Sixteen Steps,” a retrial makes Olympia remember how she lost the cast of a grieving couple, Vanessa (Harris) and Ana (Veronica Diaz Carranza), who lost their baby due to contaminated baby formula. Now Olympia has a second chance to hold the company responsible.
Unlike her emotionally open wife, Vanessa has tried to move on with a restrained demeanor when forced to dredge up painful memories. She doesn’t want to express her grief in front of the jury, but the case hinges on this. Other guest stars on the show are more easily identified with their quirks, like the strict rule follower Mrs. Belvin (Patricia Belcher), but Harris’s performance as Vanessa is heartbreaking. “Grief comes in waves,” Matty tells her, and reluctantly, Vanessa agrees. Taking on a larger supporting role in The Pitt, the different procedural subgenre allows Harris to transform into an ER hero when she arrives to help with a mass shooting emergency.
‘The Pitt’ Brings in New Doctors in the Late Hours
Unlike Matlock, the medical show on Max wants audiences to figure out who its characters are in their responses during high-stress situations. There is the playful gimmick where a Matlock episode puts in flashbacks in the final minutes to see how Matty fooled everyone, but the hour-per-episode structure of The Pitt slowly establishes the medical staff at a Pittsburgh hospital. When a mass shooting occurs towards the end of Season 1, Ayesha Harris helps the incoming patients as Dr. Parker Ellis, one of many new doctors who are brought in at a late hour.
Among the many reasons that Season 2 is much anticipated, one of them should be getting to spend more time with Ellis, who Harris makes a strong impression when she gets in the middle of the bad blood that lies between Langdon (Patrick Ball) and Santos (Isa Briones). Besides giving a good performance, both characters played by Harris do their part as a supporting character who explores the main character’s stories with a lasting impact.
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Ayesha Harris Has Great Supporting Roles in ‘Matlock’ and ‘The Pitt’
Over at 450 5th Avenue, the court preparations at Jacobson Moore aren’t going well. Olympia finds herself in a tricky and uncomfortable position, knowing Vanessa will make it hard for the jury to connect with her grief through the curt responses she gives. Admitting her worries to Matty, Olympia hears the advice she needs when Matty knows from personal experience how the pain of losing a child never goes away and Vanessa needs to open up, even if it means Olympia pushes it. Harris’ performance is devastating to watch as emotions flood Vanessa while she talks about her late son Dante on the stand, with the episode’s title a reference to Vanessa revealing it took “sixteen steps” to walk around Dante’s room when she took care of him. The couple win their retrial, for what should be a victory, but when Matty offers congratulations, the distraught look she sees on Vanessa’s face is haunting.
It’s a grim realization for Matty that justice can be served, but it won’t bring a lost child back, sending her into a panic attack that is a natural result of the stress she has been under. Over in the ER, Dr. Ellis shows herself to be observant as she catches the tension between Santos and Langdon, and can’t help but try to be nosy to learn what’s going on. Santos then gets another doctor to see her potential with Ellis, who doesn’t treat her as a favorite like Dr. Garcia (Alexandra Metz). Ellis gives a tougher approach when teaching Santos about figuring out a diagnosis for a patient, which is exactly what the student doctor needs with her cocky personality. From a larger arc in The Pitt to a tearjerker of a courtroom monologue in Matlock, Ayesha Harris shines in her appearances, with hopefully bigger roles to come next.
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- Release Date
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January 9, 2025
- Network
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Max
- Showrunner
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R. Scott Gemmill
- Directors
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Amanda Marsalis
- Writers
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Joe Sachs, Cynthia Adarkwa
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Noah Wyle
Dr. Michael ‘Robby’ Robinavitch
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Tracy Ifeachor
Uncredited
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