For the first time since 2010, all four of the original Sex and the City cast members shared a screen on Thursday—not at the same time, but at least in the same episode, when Kim Cattrall appeared for the first time in the show’s reboot, And Just Like That…, despite the actress previously rejecting any possibility of a cameo with “a powerful no.”
But someone, somewhere convinced Cattrall to play along, and in the season two finale of AJLT, Samantha’s name appears in Carrie’s phone with a buzz. While in the past, this would elicit a one-sided phone conversation as Carrie “talked” with “Samantha,” this time around, Cattrall actually appears onscreen as the two engage in an over-the-phone chat about Carrie’s upcoming dinner party. In classic Samantha Jones fashion, the PR extraordinaire is running late. Very late—as in, so late she isn’t even going to show up. She informs Carrie that she was hoping to surprise her old friend for the “Last Supper” at Carrie’s townhouse apartment, but her flight has been delayed and she’s not going to make it. “Don’t worry, we’ll just get together tomorrow,” Carrie replies. But Samantha is already en route home from Heathrow, as she was planning on just one overnight in NYC. It seems her London life is too fabulous—she can’t miss it for even a weekend. So, she says goodbye to the “fucking fabulous” apartment over the phone, from the backseat of her town car.
It’s a brief interaction, lasting about 90 seconds in total, but it’s packed full of sentimentality for SATC fans. For one, just seeing Samantha is a joy, especially dressed in a bold red dress and silver metallic trench. “I wanted to bring Samantha back because the fans were clamoring for her,” SATC costume designer Patricia Field told Elle of her costuming choices for the moment. Field, who has not been involved in the reboot, agreed to dress Cattrall for this one brief cameo; the two went shopping at Bergdorf Goodman together for the moment. “I thought she looked good. That’s my job.”
Just seeing Carrie and Samantha interact, even over the phone, is a joy. While their conversation was short, the writers did squeeze in an old SATC reference—with Samantha referring to herself as Annabelle Bronstein, the identity she stole when sneaking into the SoHo House rooftop pool in a season six episode of the original series.
Of course, fans know that despite the smiles and jokes passed between the two characters, the actresses themselves never actually interacted when creating the scene. Cattrall and Sarah Jessica Parker have been at odds for years, which is one of the many reasons why the former has refused to take part in the reboot. Cattrall previously said, “the way forward seemed clear” when it came to her decision on whether or not to appear on AJLT. “It’s a great wisdom to know when enough is enough,” she added. “I also didn’t want to compromise what the show was to me.” Because of her rejection to do a third Sex and the City movie, she claims she was never even asked to take part in the reboot, which the show’s creator, Michael Patrick King, confirmed. “You take people at their word,” he said. “I have no realistic expectation of Kim Cattrall ever appearing again.”
Because of that, it came as quite the surprise when, in June, it was announced that Cattrall would in fact return for a brief cameo in season two. But it wasn’t a happy reunion. According to Evan Handler, who plays Harry Goldenblatt on the show, Cattrall filmed the scene “in the garage somewhere with no contact with anybody,” and he only found out about the appearance when the public did.
So, does this mean we can expect Samantha to return again in season three of AJLT? She already went from a “powerful no” to a brief cameo. As of now, though, the actress is rejecting the idea of a more permanent return. “That’s as far as I’ll go,” she told Today of the cameo. But hey, if her finale appearance taught us anything, it’s never say never.