“Sex & the City” fans nearly got another trip down memory lane in “And Just Like That.” Over three seasons, the sequel has reunited viewers with beloved characters like John Corbett’s Aidan Shaw and even brought back Kim Cattrall’s Samantha Jones for a brief but unforgettable cameo. But writer Julie Rottenberg now reveals there was one more familiar face the team almost brought back.
Writers Considered Bringing Back Jack Berger
(Photo by Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images)In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Rottenberg revealed that Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, nearly had a run-in with her ex-boyfriend Jack Berger, portrayed by Ron Livingston.
“In the writers’ room, every now and then, we’d be like, ‘Do we wanna run into Berger all these years later?’” Rottenberg said. “He probably has a family and kids. That’s fun for us as fans of the original show.”
Revisiting Carrie’s Infamous Post-It Breakup
For longtime viewers, Berger is remembered as the insecure writer who ended things with Carrie via a Post-It note that read, “I’m sorry, I can’t, don’t hate me.”
To shake off the sting of the humiliating breakup, Carrie turned to her closest friends: Charlotte (Kristin Davis), Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), and Samantha (Kim Cattrall), for a wild night out. The evening ended with Carrie getting caught by a cop for smoking pot on the street, cementing the Post-It breakup as one of her most infamous storylines.
And while “And Just Like That” has revisited many of Carrie’s past loves, fans may never know if she still holds a grudge against the ex who left her with just a note.
Familiar Faces Recast in New AJLT Roles
(Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images)Beyond revisiting old flames, “And Just Like That” has also given past “SATC” actors fresh opportunities in entirely new roles. Rosemarie DeWitt, who once played Miranda’s colleague in season 6, appeared as Aidan’s ex-wife, Kathy. (Fun fact: Rosemarie DeWitt is married to Ron Livingston IRL) Which means: Aidan’s ex-wife is married to Carrie’s ex-boyfriend Berger.
Stephanie Cannon, who denied Carrie a loan in the original series, resurfaced as the banker Seema consults for a loan.
Even more minor cameos were woven back in. Andre De Shields, who taught Charlotte tap dancing in season 4 of “SATC,” returned as Gene, a mentor guiding Nya (Karen Pittman) in season 2 of AJLT.
Easter Eggs for Dedicated SATC Fans
Craig Blankenhorn/HBO MaxAccording to Rottenberg, some roles were crafted as winks to devoted viewers, while others stemmed from the team’s love of working with familiar performers.
“Some of them were Easter eggs for careful viewers,” she told EW. “Some of them were probably actors we thought, ‘So much time had passed. It was such a small part that you wouldn’t clock this person playing another part.’”
(Photo By Getty Images)She added, “Sometimes it was fun. Sometimes it’s we love to work with actors who we couldn’t get enough of. But it’s also its own universe. So we tried to walk the line between acknowledging there are gonna be people paying very close attention… If we know nothing else, it’s that people pay very close attention.”
It seems clear that for “Sex & the City” fans, the love for these characters, and their messy, magical stories, never really fades.
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Iconic ‘Sex and the City’ Character Almost Returned in ‘And Just Like That’