The upcoming “Queer as Folk” star revealed that after turning down a script for the third “SATC” film in 2017, she was not approached for the HBO Max revival series “And Just Like That,” which saw Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), and Charlotte (Kristin Davis) enter new phases of their lives. “The series is basically the third movie. That’s how creative it was,” Cattrall told Variety in a cover story. “I was never asked to be part of the reboot. I made my feelings clear after the possible third movie, so I found out about it like everyone else did — on social media.” Cattrall’s sex-positive character Samantha reportedly was going to be part of a “heartbreaking” storyline involving her receiving unwanted “dick pics” from Miranda’s son Brady, then 14 years old at the time of the anticipated third movie and now a high school senior in “And Just Like That.”
Cattrall, who now stars in Hulu’s “How I Met Your Father” sitcom, explained that ideally “some kind of event” would need to happen to warrant her appearance in a third film, let alone a reboot series. And why would that event have to include a lusty tween? “Why can’t Samantha, who owns her PR company — maybe she had to sell it because of financial woes? 2008 was tough,” Cattrall speculated of a different plotline for Samantha. “Some people are still recovering. She had to sell it to some guy who’s wearing a hoodie, and that’s the dilemma she has. I mean that’s a scenario that was kind of off the top of one of my reps’ heads, and I thought that’s a great idea. That’s a conflict. Instead of an underage boy’s…” She added, though, that “it’s a great wisdom to know when enough is enough” when playing a character. “I also didn’t want to compromise what the show was to me. The way forward seemed clear,” Cattrall said. “Everything in me went, ‘I’m done.’ And you can’t go against that feeling. I don’t ever want to be on a set and not want to be there.” While Cattrall has not watched “And Just Like That…,” the references to Samantha communicating with Carrie via text message (and missing Big’s funeral) feel “different than the Samantha that I played.” “I’ve come to the conclusion that really the greatest compliment I could have as an actor is to be missed,” Cattrall said, before calling it “odd” that the series relies on her character’s presence still. “I don’t know how to feel about it. It’s so finite for me, so it doesn’t continue.” Cattrall went on to say that the “SATC” characters didn’t really progress. “Everything has to grow, or it dies. I felt that when the series ended, I thought that’s smart,” Cattrall said. “We’re not repeating ourselves. And then the movie to end all the loose ends. And then there’s another movie. And then there’s another movie?”
Cattrall continued, “Parts of [Samantha] are with me. I played her, and I loved her. I felt ultimately protective of her…I was ready. As difficult as it was, and as scary as it is to stand up and not be bullied by the press or the fans or whomever — to just say, I’m good. I’m on this track. It was so great working with you. I so enjoyed it, but I’m over here.” While Cattrall shared that she wants to create her own sitcom someday, the star confirmed she will not be returning to any iteration of “SATC.” As showrunner Michael Patrick King previously said, “You can literally not make an actress play a part.” Series lead Sarah Jessica Parker also claimed there would be too much history between the cast for Cattrall to return. Cattrall simply told Variety that she counts her former co-stars as colleagues: “My colleagues aren’t my friends. It was professional.” So, Samantha is gone forever it seems. “It’s powerful to say no,” Cattrall summed up. “I think the original show is really amazing, but that was a different time.” Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
