Kim Cattrall to Return As ‘Sex and the City’s Samantha Jones

The actress, who previously said she would never return to the ‘Sex and the City’ character, was persuaded to return for a brief cameo shot separately from the cast.

After six seasons of the popular HBO series and two movies of vastly differing quality, ‘Sex and the City’ largely vanished from the zeitgeist for more than a decade. But it remained popular in syndication and the fanbase wanted to see the next stage of the characters, so creator Darren Star and executive producer Michael Patrick King brought the main stars back for 'And Just Like That…' with one major exception.

Kim Cattrall, who had played the sex-positive publicist Samantha Jones through the entire series and both movies, would not return for the new show. Now, though, that has changed.

Kim Cattrall stars in 'About My Father,' which is in theaters now.

What happened with Kim Cattrall and ‘Sex and the City’?

Cattrall made comments after the original show wrapped that her experience shooting had not always been positive, laying some of the blame at Sarah Jessica Parker’s feet.

The actor publicly announced in 2016 that she was finished playing Samantha when she didn’t feel like the script for a proposed third film did justice to the character. “I would have preferred for all of us to have some kind of event to warrant a third film,” Cattrall told Variety in 2022. “That didn’t happen.”

Her decision led to a further rift with Parker, and when ‘And Just Like That…’ was created, it was developed without Cattrall. King added new characters to the show, though the series itself and the new additions received some seriously mixed reviews from critics and audiences.

According to Variety’s sources, Cattrall shot her dialogue on March 22nd in New York City, without seeing or speaking with the stars of the series, including Sarah Jessica Parker, or with “And Just Like That” showrunner Michael Patrick King. The scene reportedly sees Samantha –– who in the show’s canon is now living in London –– having a phone conversation with Carrie.

The characters, who were written in the spin-off as estranged, reconnected at the end of Season One via text. This will mark Cattrall’s first –– and potentially only –– appearance on the new show.

(L to R) Kristin Davis, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon star in Max's 'And Just Like That...' Photograph by Craig Blankenhorn / HBO Max.

What’s the story of ‘And Just Like That…’?

The series follows the continuing stories of Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon) and Charlotte York (Kristin Davis) as they confronted the reality of 2020s New York and the vagaries of aging.

No longer the 30/40-somethings of the original series, they’re now confronted with shifting gender dynamics and, in Miranda and Charlotte’s cases, the challenges of raising teenagers.

Carrie, meanwhile, has her own issue to deal with when longtime paramour and husband of several years, John James Preston (Chris Noth) dies unexpectedly.

While she deals with that, Carrie’s storyline this year will include a reunion with old flame Aiden, played by John Corbett.

Season 2 of ‘And Just Like That…’ debuts on the Max streaming service on June 22nd.