When And Just Like That dropped its first two episodes last December, former co-host of The View, Meghan McCain, penned a scathing review in her Daily Mail column. She attacked the “misguided, woke reboot of ‘Sex and the City’”, saying it was humorless and left her “simultaneously disappointed and depressed.”
She highlighted what she perceived as a “clumsy attempt to reformat the show into the woke and puritanical times we are living in.” This included lead character Carrie being on a podcast with someone who is, “of course—queer and nonbinary. Because it’s so boring and un-evolved to be a straight white woman.”
“The supporting cast exhibits commendable racial and identity diversity, but we don’t learn much about their characters.
“It’s almost if they were written into the script to satisfy the PC censors.”
McCain concluded, “It is wokeness superficially shoved down your throat to make a point about wealthy white liberal women ‘evolving’ into the political climate of 2021.”
View this post on Instagram
The reboot has divided opinion, but many fans of the show—which has now ended its run—are eagerly hoping it’s recommissioned for a second season.
Related: Sarah Jessica Parker talks about Samantha Jones to Andy Cohen
Last week, on his Sirius XM podcast, Andy Cohen asked the leading cast members specifically about McCain’s criticism that the show had become “too PC”.
Nicole Ari Parker, who plays Lisa Todd Wexley, said, “What’s too much? Maybe in your living room or when you step outside, it looks the same as inside, and you go to the grocery store and it’s the same. Maybe it is too much for you. For these characters in New York City, it’s not.”
Kristen Davis, who plays Charlotte, agreed, adding that they’d done something with the show that had not been tried before.
“We took our characters, we put them in a different show with a different name, we brought in new people,” she explained. “I can’t think of another situation where someone has done that with a show. … People don’t know how to think about it.”
Related: Bad news for all you ‘And Just Like That’ hate watchers
Cynthia Nixon, who plays Miranda, said that people forget that the early episodes of Sex And The City proved very divisive, with some people reacting badly to its portrayal of women.
“People forget how incendiary the show was, and how… not just only because of the sexual frankness and conversations, but how revolutionary this was to show four women having a lot of sex with a lot of different partners,” she said.
“I remember so well the initial chatter about the show, at least the first couple of seasons, [people saying] these are not really women, women don’t really have sex like this, women don’t talk like this, these are not women, these are gay men in drag.”
Nixon concluded, “This is a show that has always pushed every kind of boundary, and I think that’s what’s so magnificent about the new show.
“We don’t want to see these characters … comfortable. We want to see them out of their comfort zones.”
Nixon said the original, “beloved” Sex And The City was now “enshrined in nostalgia,” suggesting some people will always react to any tinkering of its formula or change in the characters.
You can watch the discussion below.
cuteguy
Whet boundary is the show pushing? The boundary of humor? The boundary of a real plot line? One can easily tell that they were coached by Michael Patrick King on how to respond to these softball prepared questions thrown by SJP bff. They are trying to gaslight the audience, especially the SATC fans into thinking they have a decent show. It’s been panned by most bc it’s a truly terrible show, if they wanted to change the main characters completely, they should have started with changing their names and just have a new show with the 3 actresses from SATC. Michael Patrick King is an as$hole. Kim Cattrall was right about him.
Heywood Jablowme
Damn… if Meghan McCain hates AJLT, I need to rethink my original assessment!
It’s not THAT bad. Some things didn’t make sense, I thought, but it was entertaining.
GrizzleyMichael
The bitch is just jealous because she isn’t on tv anymore or have any friends
Polaro
Yeah, I think “And Just Like That” is too woke too, but it is a creature of our times. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. I will continue to watch the show because, overall, I remain interested.
I was asked to speak at Trans Visibility in the Workplace in March. I refused, not being trans, because no good turn goes unpunished by the leftists cancel vultures – like AJLT. Problem is, we don’t have any out trans people in my 1,300 person organization and none of the gays and lesbians will touch it with a 10′ pole. Which is a data point in itself when it comes to the tail wagging the LGBT dog.
Ronbo
It’s telling how extremists have silenced us from even discussing such important issues. Even those who are 98% supporters are attacked – because if you aren’t 100% with them you MUST be against them. (Wrong!) They leave no room for individual thought, growth or introspection.
We all KNOW that women are more than just men without dicks. Right? Are men just women with dicks? Trans individuals are a beautiful expression of gender AND sex is real
Cam
@Ronbo
Yes, it IS telling how Republians are trying to make it illegal for schools to mention that LGBTQ people exist, make it hard for Black people to vote, and trying to remove mentions of slavery and Japanese internment from School as well as teaching the Holocaust from “Both Sides”.
barryaksarben
I have a news flash for you – the people at your work wont touch it because they are scared. Look at where the far right lunatics now in control of the gop and the supreme court are going and wanting to drag the rest of us with them. Roe V Wade has precedent as it has been challaged and found legal twice after passing in the 70s and it will be gone soon and they are coming after gay marriage as they just accepted a case to review in the Supreme court over the colorado religious liberty law which you know Thomas and Barrett are dying to get on their way to getting rid of us all and doing away with gay marriage. And I dont see any liberal s trying to RESTRICT rights for anyone. You and people like you scream about cancel culture while the real cancelling is coming from the right. The only one ever TRUELY cancelled was Kapernick as he lost his job in his prime over taking a kneww while a teenager is driven over state lines witha rifle by his mother into a dangerous area. Where else but in entitled white America would that happen? She knew her little white boy could murder people and get away with it
Polaro
Barry, I have no idea why you bothered with that comment. You think you know my co-workers better than I do? Were you on our Teams call when we discussed this? No. You really think cancel culture isn’t toxic and real? You believe the left isn’t dangerous because the right is also toxic and dangerous? I think you just like hearing yourself talk nonsense.
garmo98
What I’d like to know is why the Daily Mail gives an avenue of expression to someone like Ms. McCain? Are they so desperate for copy they will take poison pen columns from narrowminded haters?
Kangol2
The Daily Mail is an infamous right-wing rag. That’s why.
MikeM
Did any of them get their job merely by being someone’s daughter?
BarryM
Probably. Just like Hunter Biden made MILLIONS of dollars giving “advice” to an energy company in Ukraine, although Hunter has no experience or education in the energy field.
MikeM
Ah, yes. The “investigation” that went nowhere. Yet, he’s not shooting his mouth off, is he?
tjack47
I didn’t care for SATC.
barryaksarben
That is fine, you dont have to. No, you will not be cancelled as some here would like to scare you with while they continue to try to erode gay rights – MS McCain (why does she not use her married name?) and her homophobic husband should STFU
marshal phillips
I never cared for Meghan McCain
Jaquelope
@barryaksarben : Because if she used her married name, it wouldn’t remain a constant reminder whose daughter she was. Does that answer your question? Couldn’t you figure that out by yourself? You seem intelligent enough to have done so yourself.
johncp56
what a hypocritical hateful initialed moron she is wo is me poor rich white women, scummy
rick_blond_bear
I lacked the boldness of the old show, imagine they, being in their 50’s with the boldness of the old show, would be such a statement for women (all ages) – Seema Patel, the new character was inserted to fill the sex vacuum left by Samantha but still, lacks her kinkness and something I can’t describe but it’s not there. Maybe I got used to be shocked every episode of the original show, but I found it to be a little vanilla… Hoping for a bolder second season.
auburnalum01
The show got better later in the season, but I hate to say it – I agree with McCain. There was nothing wrong with the way the show was. But because the woke mob criticized OG “Sex” (because God forbid four white women have a show about themselves), the reboot went overboard trying to satisfy the very people who probably weren’t even born when it first aired. And you know Cynthia Nixon pushed for Miranda to suddenly become a lesbian. The whole thing is super disappointing.