And suddenly, Sarah Jessica Parker realized watching herself onscreen is not for her.
Despite being the central figure in the beloved Sex and the City and its popular spinoff And Just Like That, Sarah revealed she’s never watched either series in full.
“Oh my God, no. I don’t watch it, never seen it,” she admitted of And Just Like That on E! News' segment The E! News Sitdown With Bruce Bozzi, adding, “Never seen Sex and the City, most of them.”
In fact, Sarah—who shares son James Wilkie, 22, and 13-year-old twins Tabitha and Marion with husband Matthew Broderick—isn’t the only family member opting to politely pass on watching. As she explained, her twins have not turned on either series quite yet.
“I think it’s very odd for them to yet let it into their viewing queue,” she said during her interview, airing on E! News tonight, May 27 at 11 p.m. “Even for James Wilkie, he started by coming to the premiere of And Just Like That, then he started watching the show but school work got in the way. But it’s all available for them some day if they want it, they’ll get no pressure from me.”
After all, Sarah is a mom first and Carrie Bradshaw second.
“Mostly I want them to recall me as their parent,” the 60-year-old explained. “But maybe one day they’ll find a way to watch it and be comfortable with what they see. I mean there’s nothing I do that I think is terribly shocking, but it’s a very different way of seeing a parent.”
But despite her own reticence to tune into SATC, Sarah is grateful not only for the impact the show had and continues to have, but also that she and fellow cast members Cynthia Nixon, Kristin Davis and Kim Cattrall knew how special the show was even during filming.
“I think so many really special opportunities fly by and you’re in the minutiae of doing the work, and one often doesn’t have the opportunity to enjoy it,” she reflected. “And I think we were very lucky in that we really loved our jobs, we aren’t looking back now and regretful, ‘Oh my gosh, I wish we’d been happy. I wish we’d understood what we had.’ And that means everything.”
After all, a show is much more than just those on screen.
“It means primarily our crew, because that is the meat and potatoes of your day—these multitudes of people who outnumber the cast,” Sarah explained. “That group makes for harmony. Then the streets of New York, our cast—extraordinary women and men—the writers and directors, and this city. And sure, days are hard and there’s challenges, but it was really joyous and we laughed a lot.”
For a look back at some of the most iconic—and worst—onscreen relationships during Sex and the City, keep reading.
16. Samantha and Richard
Ugh, what an a--hole.
Best moment: N/A.
15. Carrie and Berger
It's hard to remember the couple's early banter-filled, cute moments after all the horrible, passive-aggressive crap the writer pulled later on. HE BROKE UP WITH HER ON A POST-IT.
Best moment: None are coming to mind at the moment, Berger. We're sorry, we can't. Don't hate us.
14. Samantha and Maria
No one believed this relationship would last, right? Still, Samantha gave it the ol' college try.
Best moment: After a night out with Carrie and her new beau, during which Samantha told Big to "back off," Maria told Samantha she couldn't be just friends.
13. Miranda and Che
Not on fans' bingo cards when they tuned into Max's revival series And Just Like That...? Miranda ending her marriage and following a standup comedian across the country!
Best Moment: TBD...hopefully? Otherwise, for the pure comedy of it all, it has to be Che and Miranda hooking up in Carrie's kitchen while a recovering-from-hip-surgery Carrie peed herself in bed.
12. Carrie and Petrovsky
Oh, the Russian. Their relationship started off too romantic to be true…and it was. He didn't get along with her friends and Carrie's impulsive move to Paris proved to be a disaster.
Best moment: After too many grand romantic gestures, Carrie literally swooned. So naturally, Petrovsky took her, in her dream ball gown, to McDonald's, where they slow-danced while waiting for fries. We literally swooned.
11. Charlotte and Trey
On paper, Trey was the perfect guy for Charlotte. But, the cracks began to show (overbearing mother, "Trey can't get it up," not wanting kids, etc.) soon after their wedding. Also: he gave her a cardboard cut-out baby. Who does that?!
Best moment: When Trey took Charlotte to Tiffany's so she could pick out her dream ring to make up for the infamous "Alrighty!" comment.
10. Samantha and James
The first relationship Samantha had that wasn't based on sex came to an end because of, well, sex. Or James' small penis, to be exact.
Best moment: When Samantha told James she loved him. A huge (no pun intended) moment for her.
9. Miranda and Skipper
Poor, poor Skipper. He was kind of like a Steve-lite, and Miranda was able to walk all over him.
Best moment: When he calls her "luminous" during their chance meeting at a bodega.
8. Anthony and Stanford
Sure, it came out of nowhere in the movies that Carrie's BFF and Charlotte's wedding planner-turned-bestie would get together, but it kind of works for us.
Best moment: In their wedding vows, when Anthony said, "It wasn't love at first sight, but it turns out it was love. You are the first man to accept me for the man that I actually am."
7. Carrie and Aidan
Let's face it, Aidan was a great guy but he wasn't The Guy for Carrie…no matter how hard they both tried to convince themselves that he was. However, season two of And Just Like That... may just prove that second chances are the hottest trend this summer. (Yes, we are refusing to acknowledge their dalliance in Sex and the City 2.)
Best moment: Is it weird that we loved their breakup scene—the second one—where they slept on the floor of the apartment they would never live in together?
6. Miranda and Robert
Talk about a catch. Robert was almost perfect: he was a hot doctor for the New York Knicks who watched the same soaps as Miranda. His one flaw? He just wasn't Steve.
Best moment: Their first kiss at their "lockers," (i.e.: mailboxes). Or her taking a personal day for the first time ever for him. OR THE CHICKEN POX.
5. Samantha and Smith
Of all the guys on SATC, Smith Jerrod might just be the best. He was so patient and so giving with the wild Samantha, who fought tooth and nail not to fall in love with the model-turned-superstar.
Best moment: Who doesn't tear up just thinking about Smith shaving his golden locks for Samantha when she lost her hair while undergoing chemo?
4. Carrie and Big
Absof--kinglutely. (Curse you, Peloton!)
Best moment: Come on, how can we not choose Big going to Paris to finally tell Carrie she's the one? (Although the fart-in-bed/whoopee cushion prank still makes us smile.)
3. Miranda and Steve
Just as Miranda's feelings for Steve snuck up on her, our love for this couple hit us like a ton of bricks—just like their split in And Just Like That...'s first season. Justice for Steve!
Best moment: If any moment perfectly represents SATC's most low-maintenance couple, it was Miranda's out-of-nowhere proposal and their super low-key wedding in the park. So them. So perfect.
2. Charlotte and Harry
They say love often finds you when you least expect it…like when your sweaty putz of a divorce lawyer turns out to be the man of your dreams and the best father to your children you could've imagined.
Best moment: Their mess-filled, imperfectly perfect nuptials. From the beginning of the series, Charlotte wanted the fairy tale wedding, but what she got was the fairy tale marriage.
1. The Girls
"The most important thing in life is your family. There are days you love them and others you don't, but in the end they're the people you always come home to. Sometimes it's the family you're born into. And sometimes it's the one you make for yourself."
Best moment: We were SO tempted to choose Carrie walking Miranda down the aisle at her mother's funeral, but we thought a moment with all four girls was appropriate. Our choice? When Miranda doesn't give two shits about her wedding after hearing about Samantha's breast cancer diagnosis, with all four girls tuning out the celebration to just be together. Because that's what friendship is: putting others before yourself.