‘Sex and the City’: Only One Main Character’s Family Never Appears on the Show
Sex and the City writers and producers were adamant about one thing; they didn’t want the show to be about the girls’ biological families. The writing team went to great lengths to rarely mentioned the families of Samantha Jones, Carrie Bradshaw, Miranda Hobbes, and Charlotte York. Still, fans learned a little bit about each woman’s background. Only one character never had a family member appear in the series, though.
Miranda Hobbes and Charlotte York’s families were the most heavily featured on Sex and the City
Miranda, the most emotionally guarded of her pals, dealt with some of the biggest emotional changes a woman in their 30s can go through. She had a baby on the show, she got married, and she lost her mother. In season 3, fans learn that Miranda’s mother had died suddenly of a heart attack. Carrie, Samantha, and Charlotte all showed up to support her at the funeral. The sad event was the only major glimpse fans got of Miranda’s sisters. It was not the only time she mentioned them, though. Miranda once revealed that she had a large family, including nieces and nephews, back home in Philadelphia. She quipped that she “lost two sisters to the motherhood.”
Sex and the City fans probably learned the most about Charlotte’s family. Thanks to a wedding announcement, viewers found out that Charlotte was raised in an affluent Connecticut town and was the daughter of a doctor and a socialite. Charlotte’s brother, Wesley York, also appeared in the series in a single episode, and cameras briefly showed her father during her season 3 wedding to Trey MacDougal.
Sex and the City showed Carrie Bradshaw’s father in a photo, but she never mentioned her mother
Sex and the City writers were exceptionally careful not to give too much away about Carrie’s background. Fans of the original series never learned where Carrie was born or where she was raised. Carrie fans also never knew anything about Carrie’s mother, but her absentee father was mentioned once.
In season 6, Carrie revealed that her father “quit” her and her mother when she was five. She admitted that she never knew why he left, and while she never mentioned it, fans can assume it deeply affected her. Carrie’s father never actually appeared in the series, but a picture of a young Carrie with her father was shown. It was the only time she mentioned her parents. Writers also led fans to believe that Carrie was an only child based on the episode.
Even Mr. Big’s mother made an appearance
While Mr. Big wasn’t exactly a main character, his family was mentioned early on in the show’s six seasons. Big’s mother made an appearance during the very first season of Sex and the City. Unlike the true main characters of the series, Mr. Big’s mother was a major focal point during the season 1 finale of the series.
In the episode, “Oh Come All Ye Faithful,” Carrie becomes obsessed with the notion of being introduced to Mrs. Preston as Big’s girlfriend after accidentally running into Big and his mother leaving mass. His reluctance to introduce his mother to yet another girlfriend led to the couple’s first demise. While Carrie and Big eventually got back together, broke up again, had an affair, and ultimately got married, Neither Carrie nor Big ever mentioned Mrs. Preston again.
Sex and the City fans never saw Samantha Jones’ family
Fans may have caught glimpses of the other girls’ family members, but that wasn’t the case with Samantha. While she mentioned her upbringing on at least two occasions, no one from her biological family was ever seen. The fact that the show didn’t offer fans a glimpse of Samantha’s family made her particularly unique.
Even though fans never got to see Sammie Jones’s family members, they did learn a decent amount about her background. During Sex and the City’s six-season run, Samantha revealed that she had at least two siblings. She made it clear that her parents were married and that her father may have had an issue with substance abuse. Later, she suggested she had a decidedly middle-class upbringing when she mentioned working at Dairy Queen as a teenager.
