The showrunner confirmed that Cattrall will reprise her role as Samantha Jones for season 2 of the 'Sex and the City' spinoff series.
While Sex and the City fans are understandably thrilled at the return of Kim Cattrall's Samantha Jones for season 2 of And Just Like That, showrunner Michael Patrick King is a bit disappointed by one element of the cameo.
"I am a little bit upset that you even know about it because I really wanted you to be sitting there watching the show, see Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) look at her phone and all of a sudden seeing Samantha," King tells ET's Cassie DiLaura during a press day for the second season of the Max series. "But there's a secret. You don't know why she's there and what's going to happen."
For King, Samantha has always been a part of the And Just Like That universe.
"Carrie in the first season texted her and there was a connection because I wanted to keep Samantha alive," King says.
After Cattrall's very public comments against the show and specifically Parker, she had previously claimed to be done playing Samantha for good. In season 1 of And Just Like That, her absence was explained by a falling out between Samantha and Carrie Bradshaw over a business disagreement. But after the death of her husband, Mr. Big (Chris Noth), Carrie and Samantha texted back and forth several times, including a scene in the season 1 finale where they agreed to meet up for drinks while Carrie was in Paris, France.
King shares that in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Sex and the City franchise, he wanted to create some magic for the fans with Samantha's return.
"Even to the point where Kim was finished playing her for a while I wanted to keep Samantha alive because she's a big part of the Sex and the City brand," he explains. "So here it is the 25th anniversary, and I guess magic happened. Some showbiz emotional fan magic happened where all of a sudden Kim is like, 'All right, let's show up for this special treat.' And it was fun. I mean, it was always fun to write Samantha, and it was great to have the chance to take her from text to face."
As for whether Samantha would be returning for season 3, King didn't want to speculate.
"I wouldn't even want you to know she was coming back this time, so I am not gonna say anything about Samantha in the future," he notes.
Samantha isn't the only returning character this season. Carrie's former fiancé, Aidan Shaw (John Corbett), is also back to stir up some potential romance for the widow.
"I thought it was interesting to bring somebody from her past who the audience feels was right for her. Correction. Half the audience feels was right for her. Half the audience feels it was Mr. Big. So you're already starting with a dialogue with the fans and the audience," King shares. "John and Sarah Jessica has the most amazing chemistry, so that was a no-brainer, but I did start season 2, the beginning of season 2 thought-wise with one word -- Aidan."
Season 2 of And Just Like That premieres Thursday, June 22 on Max.
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