Kathy Bates' family won't allow her to use Instagram.

The 76-year-old actress - who was previously married to Tony Campisi from 1991until 19971 - is close with her niece Linda but revealed that she tries to keep her away from social media in case she comes across a bad review of herself.

She told E! News: "I'm not allowed to be on Instagram because my niece Linda says I'll read five million great ones and one bad one, and I'll fixate on the bad."

The 'Misery' star has had a glittering career that has seen her earn an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globes but enjoyed something of a resurgence when she was cast in the reboot of 'Matlock'.

But shortly after taking on the role of the famed TV detective, Kathy claimed that it would be her last on-screen role and had described it as her "last dance", although this was not exactly what she meant.

She said: "I was about to say sayonara before 'Matlock' came along. because it's very hard as you get older to find roles that you can spread your wings, but roles that people see you in. And so I was really having second thoughts about whether to say goodbye"

The initial comment immediately made fans think that Kathy was headed for retirement, but she later clarified that was not the case.

She told Entertainment Weekly: "What I meant was, I had one foot out the door until I read the script for 'Matlock'.

"And then I read Matlock and I said 'Ooooooookay, close the door. We're gonna do some more.' I want it to run for years. It's that great."