3 Times ‘Sex and the City’ Was Unexpectedly Referenced in Other Shows
Sex and the City is considered a cultural icon. The HBO series was incredibly provocative for its time and kept viewers hooked for six seasons. The original series ended nearly two decades ago. In the years between the original series and the reboot, fans have kept the series alive. Other TV shows have helped out, too. The show’s cultural reach was acknowledged in a multitude of other television series. Have you caught Sex and the City references in other TV shows? We’ve collected three of our favorites.
Emily Gilmore referenced ‘Sex and the City’ in ‘Gilmore Girls’
Gilmore Girls was well-known for its pop culture knowledge. In fact, the show is famous for its ability to drop incredibly obscure references. Not every reference made in the series was obscure, though. Sex and the City was referenced at least twice during the show’s seven-season run.
In The season 4 episode, “The Fundamental Things Apply,” Emily Gilmore informs Lorelai that she doesn’t want her to dress Rory Gilmore up in one of her “Sex and the City ensembles.” Lorelai questions how Emily knows about Sex and the City, to which she rolls her eyes. Lorelai referenced the fame show to Miss Patty, too.
Interestingly enough, Sex and the City and Gilmore Girls actually had a fair bit in common. Both shows featured a couple who went to Yale and Smith College. Both shows also had an ex on an answering machine mishap.
Luis in ‘2 Broke Girls’ was a fan of ‘Sex and the City’
2 Broke Girls followed the lives of Max, a hardscrabble waitress, and Caroline, the daughter of a disgraced billionaire, as they build an unlikely friendship and lend a helping hand to each other. At the center of the series is the Williamsburg Diner, where both Caroline and Max work. In one episode, a waiter named Luis reveals that he’s a secret Sex and the City fan when his phone goes off with the Sex and the City theme song as his ringtone. Luis and Caroline bond over the fact that they are both Charlottes.
It makes sense that 2 Broke Girls included at least one Sex and the City reference. Michael Patrick King had a hand in both shows. King served as the showrunner for Sex and the City. He went on to create 2 Broke Girls and is now back as the showrunner for the HBO Max reboot, And Just Like That… Kat Dennings, the actor who portrayed Max, appeared on Sex and the City. That single-episode arc helped her land her role on 2 Broke Girls.
Raj from ‘The Big Bang Theory’ was a huge fan of the HBO hit
Raj Koothrappali is well known for his love of romantic comedies. He enjoyed Eat, Pray, Love, Bridget Jones’ Diary, and Twilight. Raj also revealed that he was a huge Sex and the City fan. In the season 3 episode, “The Precious Fragmentation,” Leonard Hofstadter argues that he has patience because he watched “all five seasons of Sex and the City” with Penny.
While Leonard wasn’t a fan of the series, Raj certainly was. Raj revealed that there weren’t just five seasons but six. He explained to Leonard and Sheldon Cooper why season 6 was worth a watch. Raj nailed the description, too. Carrie Bradshaw in Paris is certainly a highlight of the season for many fans.
The Big Bang Theory, 2 Broke Girls, and Gilmore Girls were far from the only shows that referenced Sex and the City. The series has ingrained itself so deeply into the collective conscious that a reference to it pops up in the most unexpected places. It’s shocking just how many television characters consider themselves a Charlotte, a Miranda, a Samantha or a Carrie.
