‘This Is What They Came Up With’: ‘Sex and the City’ Author Slams Reboot
Christian Zilko
The rollout of “And Just Like That…” has been rough, to say the least. HBO Max’s reboot of “Sex and the City was one of the streamer’s most anticipated new titles, but the series has been plagued with problems. The reboot debuted to abysmal reviews, with many fans lamenting the changes made to the beloved characters. But the real trouble began when Chris Noth, who plays Carrie’s longtime love interest Mr. Big, was accused of sexual assault by multiple women. He was ultimately edited out of the season finale, and he is not the only prominent cast member missing from the show. Kim Cattrall, known for playing Samantha Jones, did not participate in the revival due to her public feud with Sarah Jessica Parker.
The troubled show received more bad news this week when Candace Bushnell, who wrote the book of the same name that inspired “Sex and the City,” criticized “And Just Like That…” in an interview with The New Yorker. When asked if she was a fan of the show, Bushnell’s answer was a resounding “no.”
“I’m really startled by a lot of the decisions made in the reboot,” she said. “You know, it’s a television product, done with Michael Patrick King and Sarah Jessica Parker, who have both worked with HBO a lot in the past. HBO decided to put this franchise back into their hands for a variety of reasons, and this is what they came up with.”
Carrie Bradshaw, the show’s protagonist and narrator played by Sarah Jessica Parker, was inspired by Bushnell’s life as a young writer in New York City. But the author has a hard time relating to the version of Carrie that the reboot presented. When asked if she still sees herself in the character, she said “not at all. I mean, Carrie Bradshaw ended up being a quirky woman who married a really rich guy. And that’s not my story, or any of my friends’ stories.” Bushnell was able to laugh off the creative choices she found questionable, saying “TV has its own logic.”
“And Just Like That…” has not officially been renewed for a second season, but both HBO and Sarah Jessica Parker have expressed interest in producing more.
