Despite mixed reviews, And Just Like That…, Max’s Sex and the City revival series, was renewed for a third outing ahead of its second season finale. Ahead of filming, And Just Like That season 3 is already experiencing some setbacks — ones that prove the show should have ended. In the And Just Like That season 2 finale, Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) throws a “last supper” for her iconic apartment. Joined by Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte York Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis), and plenty of AJLT newcomers, Carrie seemingly closes a significant chapter in her life.
Between John Corbett’s Aiden Shaw, Carrie’s Sex and the City flame, finally committing to the columnist (with some stipulations) and Kim Cattrall’s long-awaited cameo as Samantha Jones, And Just Like That‘s sophomore season ending delivered a lot of fan service. More than that, it felt like an appropriate conclusion to a revival that has made some substantial missteps. Real-world problems are also having quite an impact on And Just Like That season 3’s viability. To quote Carrie, “We couldn’t help but wonder” if the sequel should’ve called it quits with season 2.
Previously, actor Sara Ramirez shared that they wouldn’t be returning for And Just Like That season 3. The news was met with a mixed reaction: while some viewers felt frustrated by Ramirez’s character, Che Diaz, a comedian who becomes Miranda’s key love interest, others believed Ramirez’s political outspokenness led to Che being cut from the SATC sequel series. Regardless, the loss of Che will certainly shake things up. Even though they broke up with Miranda ahead of the season 2 finale, Che is still one of Carrie’s close friends — close enough to attend her “last supper.“
Following the news of Ramirez’s departure, Karen Pittman’s exit from And Just Like That season 3 was also announced. Pittman played NYU professor Dr. Nya Wallace, a recently divorced woman who has never dated anyone other than her ex-husband. Between Ramirez and Pittman’s leaves, the third season of the Sex and the City revival is experiencing some massive casting shake-ups. While Che and Nya are supporting characters, and while the show could continue on without them, the gradually forming pattern doesn’t bode well for season 3, especially considering Nya’s new relationship was poised to feature prominently.
When And Just Like That was officially announced, it came with the news that Cattrall would not be reprising her role as Samantha. Undoubtedly, the core four women — Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, and Samantha — are the reason Sex and the City endures. Hoping to both fill the void left by Samantha’s exit and diversify the predominantly straight and white cast, And Just Like That introduced a slew of new supporting characters to the franchise, including high-powered NYC real estate agent Seema Patel (Sarita Choudhury) and Lisa Todd Wexley (Nicole Ari Parker), a mother and filmmaker who befriends Charlotte.
Some of And Just Like That‘s supporting characters get more screen time than others. Nya, for example, is relegated to sharing scenes with Miranda, who started out as a student in her class, while Che gets the benefit of having scenes with Miranda and Carrie. Even so, the casting shakeup underscores some of the series’ biggest problems. Often, there isn’t enough story (or runtime) to go around. While it remains to be seen if other actors will depart the show ahead of And Just Like That season 3’s filming, Ramirez and Pittman’s exits could signal a larger problem.
Not only did the And Just Like That season 2 finale orbit around Carrie’s “last supper,” but it emphasized its many characters’ endings and, in some cases, the new beginnings that follow. Although some threads, like the future of Lisa’s documentary and her husband’s political campaign, remain open to new developments, all while providing a measure of closure. In Lisa’s case, the filmmaker grappled with the shame she felt over choosing work instead of family. Miranda even managed to close two chapters in her life — Steve (David Eigenberg) and Che, and Nya finally found a promising love interest.
More than anyone else’s, Carrie Bradshaw’s story felt appropriately final. Not only does she finally sell her beloved “single gal” apartment, but Carrie puts herself first. One of the main backlashes to Sex and the City‘s finale was that Carrie ended up with Big. The series tried hard to romanticize its main character’s toxic relationship, all while having her choose a man (or men, really) over her friends, career, and New York. And Just Like That season 2’s finale is the opposite: Carrie chooses herself, doesn’t upend her life for Aiden, and winds up on a Greek beach with Seema.
Ramirez’s Che, who is no longer dating Miranda nor working with Carrie, might have a more natural exit from the series than Nya. The comedian-turned-actor could drift out of the main characters’ lives, much like a love interest from the original series would, or move back to Los Angeles for their career. While Nya is much more tied to New York thanks to her work, her apparent whirlwind romance with Michelin chef Toussaint Feldman (Gary Dourdan) could also help write the professor out of And Just Like That season 3’s story rather naturally.
The And Just Like That casting shakeups will only become a much larger problem if a character with a more defined, substantial role departs from the series. Frustratingly, the first two seasons didn’t give Nya much to work with, while Che’s story was tied up with Miranda’s to such a large degree. So long as Parker’s Carrie Bradshaw, Davis’ Charlotte, and Nixon’s Miranda return, the connective tissue between the two shows will remain. Still, it’s hard to imagine a better ending to And Just Like That than the one that already played out.