HBO’s upcoming Sex and the City reboot – officially titled, And Just Like That… has confirmed that it will bring back four original series actors. Running from 1998 to 2004, the series was considered ground-breaking and ahead of its time in its depiction of four women dealing with the ups and downs of New York City life. Originally based on author Candace Bushnell’s novel of the same name, the new series is entirely its own creation.
After delivering two feature films that focused on the continuing adventures of Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Samantha (Kim Cattrall), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), franchise creator Darren Star and director Michael Patrick King have been reluctant to let the concept die. The last time that SATC fans saw the characters on the big screen was with 2010’s Sex and the City 2, a film that is primarily known for being an abysmal critical failure. Yet despite that film’s failure to maintain the allure created by the TV series and to a lesser extent, its first feature film, hope remained strong that there would be a third film. Ultimately, a third film never materialized, due in part to the rather awkward (and somewhat public) falling out between Parker and Cattrall. But after years of conjecture over a third film, the decision was at last made for SATC to return to television.
And Just Like That… apparently returns to modern day New York City, where Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda are all busy managing lives in their 50s. Progress on the new series is moving along slowly but surely, with filming set to begin in NYC this summer. Before that gets underway, however, there are still some casting issues to sort out. According to The Wrap, And Just Like That… has officially cast four more stars of the original series. Carrie’s best male friend, Stanford Blatch (Willie Garson), Charlotte’s husband Harry (Evan Handler), Miranda’s husband Steve (David Eigenberg), and Stanford’s husband Anthony (Mario Cantone) will all be returning for the rebooted series.
It’s fair to say that fans of the original SATC have been slightly conflicted over the return of the series. Initially coming to a satisfying close in 2004, things were taken to the next level with the first film, as fans were able to see Carrie and Big (Chris Noth) finally get married. But as many viewers have learned in the years since SATC became the hit that it was, the original series hasn’t necessarily aged all that well. Whether or not that can be remedied in an all new series is very hard to say, particularly because so much has changed over the past 17 years since SATC went off the air. Trying to cram everything into one series could come off as forced or worse yet, completely implausible.
And then of course, there’s the issue of Parker and Cattrall. Exactly how And Just Like That… will handle the glaringly obvious absence of one of its most beloved characters is a major hurdle for the series. Whatever does happen with the explanation of Samantha’s departure, fans are likely united by their hope that the most grim possibility isn’t the one chosen. The original series developed a storyline in which Samantha was battling breast cancer, so hopefully her And Just Like That… departure isn’t the result of killing the character off. Other than that possibility, SATC’s return is sure to excite its diehard fanbase.
