The ‘Sex and the City’ Revival Will Tackle COVID, Sarah Jessica Parker Says (original) (raw)

Sex and the City is returning to television, HBO Max confirmed this month, with a limited series that reunites Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, and Kristin Davis’s characters, Carrie, Miranda, and Charlotte.

Speaking to Vanity Fair Friday morning, Parker mentioned that she is excitedly awaiting the scripts showrunner Michael Patrick King is currently concocting with a writers room that’s otherwise made up entirely of women—many of whom are new additions to the franchise.

“It’s incredibly diverse in a really exciting way,” Parker said of the show’s new writers, who will infuse the series with new “life experience, political world views, and social world views.”

Though Parker is still in the dark about specific storylines that will run through the 10 half-hour episodes, she said that she and her costars are thrilled to be revisiting their beloved characters now that they are in their 50s.

“I think that Cynthia, Kristin, and I are all excited about the time that has passed,” said Parker. “You know, who are they in this world now? Have they adapted? What part have they played? Where have they fallen short as women, as friends, and how are they finding their way? Did they move with momentum? Are they like some people who are confused, threatened, nervous [by what’s happening in the world]? I’m so curious and excited to see how the writers imagine these women today.”

Parker’s questions for Carrie, Miranda, and Charlotte kept pouring out.

“What is their relationship to social media? What has changed?” Miranda and Charlotte, she noted, are both mothers of teenagers now: “What is their life like? For Carrie, who doesn’t have family beyond her friendships, where is she professionally? How have all of these political changes affected her work? Is she still writing a column? Has she written any more books? Or does she have a podcast? What does fashion mean to her now? How have the friendships changed or not changed, and has her social circle grown?”

Parker said that COVID-19 will “obviously be part of the storyline, because that’s the city [these characters] live in. And how has that changed relationships once friends disappear? I have great faith that the writers are going to examine it all.”

She added that she’s even more eager to start filming after speaking to King, whose enthusiasm about new storylines is palpable during their phone conversations.

“He’s just, like, soaring. There’s an enormous amount to be excited about,” said Parker, who’s happy to put Carrie’s fate in the hands of the new writers. “I’m just excited to be handed the script.”

Parker has previously addressed the fact that Kim Cattrall, who played Samantha, will not be reprising her role in the reboot. Earlier this month, she denied speculation that the series would replace Samantha, telling TMZ, “We’re not looking to create a fourth character. We have New York City as the fourth character. There will be lots of interesting, new characters we are super excited about.”

Earlier this month, Parker officially confirmed the reboot—titled _And Just Like That…_—with the below teaser video.

More Great Stories From Vanity Fair

— Stanley Tucci on His Love Story With Colin Firth
— Why We Can’t Let Media Executives Reward Trump’s Cronies
— The Hidden History of the Mary Pickford Cocktail
— Thank You, Leslie Jones, for Making the News Feel Bearable
Cover Story: The Charming Billie Eilish
— A Complete Beginner’s Guide to WandaVision
— Gillian Anderson Breaks Down Her Career, From The X-Files to The Crown
From the Archive: Douglas Fairbanks Jr. on the Real Mary Pickford
— Not a subscriber? Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now.