Published Jun 8, 2026, 5:45 PM EDT
Cher Thompson is a Senior Staff Writer at Screen Rant, where she covers everything from explosive reality TV moments to cast interviews about the twists and turns of scripted dramas. With a background in creative writing, marketing, and teaching, Cher knows how to spot both the storytelling genius and the guilty pleasures in pop culture. Her work blends wit with insight, making readers feel like they’re chatting with a friend who just happens to know way too much about TV.
As Matthew Rhys has gotten more public attention for his role as Mayor Tom Loftis in Widow's Bay, it's clear that one of his best roles is still being overlooked, and could be perfect for a weekend binge. Spending much of the last two decades building one of TV's most impressive resumes, Rhys has been working consistently since the early 2000s, finding himself in incredibly different roles throughout his career. While some are finally discovering him through his new Apple TV hit, Rhys broke big with his role on ABC's Brothers & Sisters, and has continued in his success since.
Rhys' role in The Americans, alongside his now-wife Keri Russell who's found her own streaming success with Netflix's The Diplomat, was one that established him as a capable, nuanced actor who could handle incredibly complicated work. Now, with Widow's Bay, many are reaching back into his catalog to take a look at what he's done in the past. Viewers of the Apple TV series may be pleasantly surprised to find that in recent years, Rhys' role in the short-lived HBO series Perry Mason is one of his finest, even if the series only lasted for two seasons despite critical acclaim.
Perry Mason, a reimagining of the iconic legal drama that ran from 2020 through 2023, is one of the most visually distinctive shows of the modern streaming era. With Rhys at the center of the action, his previous prestige drama is a must-watch for fans of his newfound TV fame.
HBO's Perry Mason Is A Smart, Layered Crime Drama
Perry Mason may be a reimagining of a classic character, but it never truly approaches the original source material in the way viewers expect for a remake. Instead of taking the popular series on, HBO's version of Perry Mason focuses on the character's origin story in the early 1930s, long before he becomes the character known from TV and radio. As a private investigator with heaps of personal trauma to sort through, Rhys' Mason is a very different character, and the flexibility of the story allows the series to flourish both narratively and visually, creating a layered, nuanced TV experience.
With a distinct look and feel, Perry Mason set itself apart from the franchise by allowing for creative touches that made it into its own entity. Despite the fact that viewers were at least familiar with the fact that there was a Perry Mason of the past, HBO's reimagining took liberties with the character's story and focused intensely on the look and feel of the show. Positioned to be a deep, dark noir, Perry Mason had exemplary cinematography, production design, and costuming, which made it feel like it leaped off the screen at every turn and made Rhys even better.
Widow's Bay Fans Will Love Perry Mason's Use Of Rhys
Everything about Perry Mason hinges on Rhys' performance, and he doesn't fail to deliver an epic one. While Rhys' character on Widow's Bay and Perry Mason are in two very different worlds and times, the touches Rhys puts into his performance makes them both soaring successes. Both are equally compelling because he's able to make them work, but for entirely different reasons. With authentic, resonant, honest performances in both shows, viewers of Widow's Bay would love the way that Perry Mason uses Rhys, and the way that he is able to bend into both spaces without much of an issue.
Perry Mason's noir sensibilities made it clear, if his other roles hadn't, that Rhys had what it took to be on a darker series. Deeply rooted in character, Perry Mason's ability to move through its plots through a lens that Rhys took control of feels a lot like Widow's Bay's use of Tom, even if they're coming from tremendously different places at their core. While Perry Mason's cancellation still stings because of the potential that the show had moving ahead, seeing Rhys shine in Widow's Bay is an exciting consolation.
Release Date 2020 - 2023-00-00
Network HBO
Showrunner Jack Amiel
Directors Tim Van Patten, Deniz Gamze Ergüven, Marialy Rivas, Fernando Coimbra, Nina Lopez-Corrado, Jessica Lowrey
Writers Mauricio Katz, Pedro Peirano, Steven Hanna, Sarah Kelly Kaplan, Erle Stanley Gardner, Jack Amiel, Michael Begler, Ron Fitzgerald, Rolin Jones
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Audrey Marie Anderson
Agnes Holcomb
English (US) ·