And Just Like That… Sarah Jessica Parker is sitting in front of me in a Paris hotel room.
Of course, she looks divine, wearing a black Jenny Packham lace dress with a diamante collar and long puff sleeves. A book is tucked under her leg that is presumably used to occupy her between interviews. She tells me it’s part of her work as a Booker Prize judge, asks me not to disclose the title, but her passion for reading and telling stories shines through as she shows me the as-yet-unpublished novel.
We meet the day before series 3 of Sex and the City reboot And Just Like That… drops in the UK. This season’s whacky hi-jinks includes Miranda inadvertently seducing a nun (played by talk show host and comedian Rosie O’Donnell), Charlotte’s mission to seek justice for her unruly dog and, of course, Carrie’s continued long-distance relationship with Aidan – which sees her not only engage in phone sex, but fake an orgasm to boot.
Sarah Jessica sat down to discuss that scene, Carrie’s character evolution and what she really thinks of criticisms of And Just Like That… in comparison to Sex and the City.
GLAMOUR: Carrie seems somehow less riddled with anxiety and self doubt in this stage of her life – how do you feel about playing this character’s evolution… It feels like we don’t get to see a woman’s movement out of the chaos and debauchery of her younger decades enough on screen…
Sarah Jessica Parker: It feels like it’s an evolution. It feels not like there was some massive chasm between disorientation and angst and neuroses, to a person who seems slightly more circumspect, and philosophical and patient with complication.
But that feels not surprising… Because this is now a situation in which she’s confronted with that she hasn’t been in. And if we look back at the way she might’ve reacted in her thirties, it would’ve been appropriately, developmentally different. So it feels right and good, and I like that she can demonstrate that.
GLAMOUR: Would you say things get easier once you get past your 30s?
SJP: Yes, but my mum, who’s a mother of eight, always says, “Little kids, little problems, big kids, big problems.” If you’re in the world and you’re engaging with other people, I think life gets more complicated, you’re just better equipped to deal with it. So does it get easier? I don’t know. Yes and no? But you’re more likely not undone by something that, in the past would’ve felt overwhelming, or insurmountably difficult.
GLAMOUR: Let’s talk about the phone sex scene with Aidan, where Carrie fakes an orgasm. Why was that a scene you wanted to make?
SJP: I didn’t want to, it’s in the script. I mean, I don’t come up with these ideas. None of this is my idea, I influence no stories, no writing, no lines, no sweeping big ideas about plot. It’s a scene that Michael [Patrick King] thought was important, as [Carrie and Aidan] attempt to honour this sabbatical, and a way in which they’re trying to stay connected, and sort of respect the boundaries that are unclear. So yeah, that’s an instance where I didn’t have a strong enough defence against it, so I was like, ‘alright’.
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GLAMOUR: How did you feel when you first saw it?
SJP: There are worse things people are asked to do at work… I’m almost positive… I don’t want to spend too much time on that topic.
GLAMOUR: When it comes to the women who have joined for the And Just Like That… chapter, what do you think they’ve brought to the Sex and the City universe that already exists?
SJP: Richness, intelligence, beauty, perspective, a sort of colour and musical note that just didn’t exist for us, in our orchestra, it was like the missing instruments. And they both come with these very big, important, rich careers, in advance of saying yes to us, which I wasn’t even sure they would…
I just love them. I mean, I love this cast, and I think we all feel so lucky that they’re here, and they’re both so good. I saw Nicole Ari Parker in a play last season, she’s just really talented, and Sarita, her whole career…
What do you have to say to critics who have said that And Just Like That… is not as good as Sex and the City?
SJP: They said the show [Sex and the City] wasn’t good originally, that’s what I’ve heard, that’s what I blame. Sex and the City wasn’t embraced by critics. People have a different perspective now. I don’t know, we’ve never written a show, produced a show, worked on a show, with hopes that it would be beloved, embraced, well thought of, by any but an audience. I don’t want to read [reviews], any of them. I think you have to do your best work, and not be craven about any of it, or manipulative, or goal-oriented, or result-oriented. I think it’s a real point of pride that we’ve always been bold and brave, and told big stories and little ones and painful stories, and have a character who’s made pretty big graphic mistakes, and been really decent, generous, and loving and fallen short. And it’s so interesting that just more often than not, that’s not allowed in a woman, but a man can be a murderer, mobster, gang leader.
GLAMOUR: It’s interesting that Sex and the City was and remains so loved by fans but you remember critics not feeling the same…
SJP: What is their point of view, and how interested are they in women’s stories? I’ve always just worked hard, and tried to do great work.
GLAMOUR: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from playing Carrie?
SJP: I don’t know that I learned lessons from playing Carrie, nor have I learned from playing Sarah Sanderson [in Hocus Pocus], you know what I’m saying? But there’s things that I admire about her, that I envy.
Later that day, I’m lucky enough to sit down with two invaluable additions to the And Just Like That… cast, Sarita Choudhury and Nicole Ari Parker.
Sarita asks me: “You know we’re best friends in real life?” We’re about to play GLAMOUR’s Friendship Test, but their closeness and easy chemistry is already apparent. When we talk about their first impressions of each other, it seems it was pretty much platonic love at first sight – and they’re keen to recount the earlier days of their friendship 25 years ago when they were flat broke and going out for $7 margaritas.
Their characters Seema and Lisa have been gifted some juicy storylines this season, from Seema’s fiery FaceTime sex attempt to her encounter with a rather sexist matchmaker, not to mention Lisa’s very relatable juggle between her career and personal life, while also facing up to an all-consuming grief. It’s a big AJLT chapter for both of them.
GLAMOUR: What was it like for you both, entering the And Just Like That… and Sex and the City universe?
Nicole: I think we both just hid in our dressing rooms between takes and set. I’m going to imitate her. ‘Darling, this is absurd. The amount of glamour and lines and props. How are we going to manage?’
Sarita: It was so funny when we joined because it’s like being underwater. You can’t talk to your normal friends because they’re just so excited.
Nicole: Yeah, they can’t.
Sarita: They can’t get beyond that so they’re not going to help you.
Nicole: I don’t want to spill anything. I don’t want to rip anything. This is only one of a kind. It was sent from Paris
Sarita: Your clothes are so tight and you’ve got to be mic’ed. Where do they go? Your nails have to be perfect. Everything.
GLAMOUR: Nicole, what surprised you the most about working with Sarita?
Nicole Ari Parker: I think I know how funny and elegant and global she is and she usually only gets to play one of those. To see her in a show where the writers understand her, and it’s just a dream because we’re cheeky and she gets to light the cigarette, flick the scarf and tell someone off.
GLAMOUR: Sarita, is Nicole an introvert or an extrovert?
Sarita: That is such a good question for Nicole. Your question has the answer. So if you don’t know Nicole and you met her somewhere random, you’d be like, ‘Oh, she’s an introvert. She needs her time’. And then you turn to go get something and then she’ll break out into a song, a dance, or just this wild expression and you go, ‘is that the same person?’ And then you go back and say something to her and she’ll be back to [quiet]. It is the wildest thing. When I first met her I was like, ‘Is she shy? Is she not shy?’ She’s literally both and she has no awareness of it.
GLAMOUR: [To Nicole] What would you call yourself out of the two?
Nicole: Exactly what she said… We’re being very polite with you.
GLAMOUR: Don’t be polite!
Nicole: But if you went to the bathroom and you came out, I would be doing a full re-enactment of Judy Garland.
GLAMOUR: Don’t let me stop you doing that.
Nicole: Only with my friends!
GLAMOUR: Nicole, what is Sarita’s biggest ick?
Nicole: There’s so many. Bad coffee.
Sarita: Really good answer… I’m not particular about anything, I’m just easygoing. It’s the only thing. Someone today was like, ‘Oh my god, the face you make because they put too much milk in.’
GLAMOUR: Sarita, Seema’s matchmaking storyline this season is so interesting – do you agree with what it was saying, that men don’t tend to like a woman in control?
Sarita: We’re not healthy. I’m attracted to men who take over and I have to fight within. And so I think what’s great about Sex and the City, it shows not who we are supposed to be. It shows who we really are.
We’ve been conditioned, and what is sexy, is being dominated sexy? We don’t know because we’re so conditioned. So I think what’s great about playing someone like Seema is she really is not like that. She does know what she wants and she makes decisions quickly. In the past, if a man hurt my heart, I would still take a year to figure out if I should leave him. Seema’s from the table walking and also being polite in her goodbye. She doesn’t care.
GLAMOUR: What do you have to say to critics who have said that And Just Like That… is not as good as Sex and the City?
Sarita: It was a different culture. We forget when Sex and the City first came out, it was criticised… That’s what I think a show should be – polemic.
Nicole: We’re too busy figuring out how to close the purse and light the cigarette.
Sarita: Yeah, open the cigarette packet which is encrusted in gold. With the original show, people were confused. They were exhilarated, but they were like ‘what’? It was an early subversive, HBO was showing sex on screen. You couldn’t do that on television. It was wild.
