Sophia Michaels
“And Just Like That,” Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall) is coming back to our TV screens. After being notably absent from the first season of the “Sex and the City” revival series on Max, Cattrall will reportedly appear for a brief cameo in season two, Variety said on May 31. Cattrall did not immediately respond to POPSUGAR’s request for comment.
In the first season of the revival series, things picked up right where Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Charlotte (Kristin Davis), and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) left off at the end of “Sex and the City 2.” While the fabulous fan-favorite foursome had since become a trio because of Cattrall’s decision to pull out of the franchise, the series did ultimately reveal what Cattrall’s beloved character, Samantha, is up to.
Where Is Samantha in “And Just Like That”?
Turns out, public-relations maven Samantha has moved to London for work and no longer speaks with her former besties — all because Carrie wanted to end her professional relationship with Samantha as her book publicist because of how much the book publishing industry had evolved.
Writer-director-showrunner Michael Patrick King explained at the red carpet premiere of season one in 2021 that addressing Samantha’s absence had a lot of “emotional qualities” in the series. “I love Samantha. We love Samantha. We know the fans love Samantha. So when Kim didn’t want to do the show and didn’t want to play Samantha anymore because of her own reasons, I had to find a way through the storytelling to respect what the fans felt about Samantha,” King told Vanity Fair. “Rather than ignore her, we still made her part of the story, and to honor Samantha.”
Samantha does pop up in some form throughout season one. When Carrie’s husband, Mr. Big, dies, she sends a floral arrangement to the funeral. And in the first season finale, she and Carrie exchange texts and plan to have a full conversation in the future.
According to Variety, Cattrall’s season two appearance will be a continuation of that storyline. Sources told the outlet that Samantha will have a phone conversation with Carrie in the upcoming scene. “And Just Like That” returns for season two on June 22, but Variety reported Cattrall’s episode doesn’t air until August.
Why Isn’t Kim Cattrall in “And Just Like That”?
Cattrall previously told The Mail in July 2019 that she would never return to the role of Samantha, Entertainment Tonight reported. “You learn lessons in life, and my lesson is to do work with good people and try and make it fun,” she said.
Still, ahead of the “And Just Like That” premiere, Parker said that there is no ill will between the former costars in the comment section of a Jan. 10 Instagram post about the reboot. “No. I don’t dislike her. I’ve never said that. Never would,” she wrote, ET reported. “Samantha isn’t part of this story. But she will always be part of us. No matter where we are or what we do. X.”
As for Davis, she seems to have the same respect for what Cattrall brought to the franchise. “We love Samantha,” she said during a Dec. 7 appearance on the “Today” show. “Samantha is never not going to be a part in some way, so there is respect for Samantha. It’s part of the story. We’d never disrespect Samantha.”
Cast-member drama didn’t seem to affect Cattrall’s participation in season two. Variety said that she filmed her appearance solo back in March and did not interact with Parker or King. Original “Sex and the City” costume designer Patricia Field dressed Cattrall for the scene, the outlet said.
