‘And Just Like That …’ Michael Patrick King Explains Exactly Why the ‘Sex and the City’ Revival Took a Dark Turn
[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for the first two episodes of And Just Like That… ]
And Just Like That … Mr. Big died. While fans try to wrap their heads around why the Sex and the City revival took such a hard right turn into death, showrunner Michael Patrick King recently explained they wouldn’t have done the new series without that being a storyline.
So why did they kill off Mr. Big? Big aka John James Preston took longtime fans on a rollercoaster love affair with Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker). But the couple seemingly found their happy ending after the second film. The couple was nesting in the opener of And Just Like That … until they killed off Big – death by Peloton.
Why did they kill off Mr.Big on ‘And Just Like That …’?
King explained that they had to kill off Big (Chris Noth) in order to take the series in a new direction. “Dying was the origin story,” he explained to Vanity Fair. “Nobody wanted to come back if [the show] was not going to be different. When I told Chris that Mr. Big dies in the first episode, he definitely knew it wasn’t [going to be the] same. And we had to talk about it.”
“He really wanted to talk about why he’s dying and what it does for this series,” King added. “The more we talked about it, the more he understood that it was for Carrie—and Carrie’s storyline is it’s better to have loved and lost than never have loved at all.”
Why did Chris Noth agree to do ‘And Just Like That …’?
King said that Noth did the show for Parker. “Once Chris really understood that it would be amazing for Carrie, he made a sacrifice for us, and because he loves Sarah Jessica so much.”
“The legacy of that character wouldn’t diminish, but would increase his legend by leaving,” he said. “If you can find someone who loves you, that’s fabulous. But this really lets us test out that thesis—the voiceover we end the series within Sex in the City—that the most significant, challenging, difficult, and rewarding relationship of all is the one you have with yourself.”
King emphasized that the series had to reflect life for the women in their 50s and not try to remain in the same place as they were in their 30s. “It’s also really interesting to me because 55 and single is a whole new ballpark. You thought 35 and single was a story. 55 and single is a story as well.”
… But death by Peloton for Mr. Big?
Big has a heart attack and dies after a vigorous ride on his beloved Peloton bike, which became controversial for both fans and the Peloton company. Peloton issued a statement that their equipment does not induce a heart attack and that Big was not the healthiest person.
But King said the bike itself had nothing to actually do why they killed Big off. “The Peloton is a thing [though] that people have now, right?” he asserted. “It reflects [modern] society. I wanted something to show that Mr. Big was current. Everybody kept coming and saying, ‘Oh, [the characters] are old. They’re old.’ These characters are alive and vibrant.”
“And I thought, what would Mr. Big be doing during the pandemic?” he mused. “He’d be listening to his record collection and exercising at home. So we built this enormously decadent, titan-of-the-world spa bathroom and put the signature item that you would have in that at home, which is a Peloton. I ride it all the time, not in a bathroom like that. . .When Carrie carried a Fendi bag, that was the bag of the moment. Peloton is the bike of the moment. The heart attack happened off the bike.”
And Just Like That … is currently streaming on HBO Max.
