Samantha Jones will make a cameo, but filmed her scenes alone
'Sex and the City' spin-off 'And Just Like That...' faced many criticisms of its first season, but one of the biggest was its lack of Kim Cattrall.
Cattrall did not rejoin her castmates in the reboot amid long-standing tensions with Sarah Jessica Parker, and her character Samantha Jones was more or less written out of the show, with the PR exec said to now be living in London and engaging with her estranged friend Carrie only over text message.
Cattrall had previously publicly lashed out at Parker, dubbing her a 'hypocrite', after the latter had offered her condolences following the death of Cattrall's brother.
However, in a move that has shocked everyone - and has been a very well-kept secret - Cattrall will make a cameo in the forthcoming second season of the show, which is due to premiere next month.
Tellingly, Cattrall reportedly filmed her scene (which will not appear until the Season 2 finale in August, and entails Samantha having a phone conversation with Carrie) in March, "without seeing or speaking with the stars of the series, including Sarah Jessica Parker, or with “And Just Like That” showrunner Michael Patrick King", according to Variety.
They report that it was HBO CEO Casey Bloys who approached Cattrall when Season 2 began shooting, asking her to film a scene. She had previously dismissed the idea of rejoining her cast mates Parker, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon for a third film in the franchise, and was not approached to reprise her role as Samantha for the first season of 'And Just Like That...' Patricia Field, the legendary costume designed for 'Sex and the City', was drafted in to dress Cattrall for the scene, even though she does not work on the new series.
Cattrall has not publicly commented on her brief return to the show, but social media has certainly had a few things to say...