The Real Reason Samantha Jones’ ‘Sex and the City’ Reboot Storyline Fell Flat
It should come as no surprise that the absence of Samantha Jones in the Sex and the City reboot left fans feeling dismayed. Samantha was a fan favorite, and any reboot that went forward without her would have felt a bit off, at least at first. As time progressed, fans should have forgotten the missing fourth at Carrie Bradshaw’s brunch table or at least grown accustomed to her departure. That didn’t happen. Even now, as season 2 of And Just Like That… gets set to premiere, fans are talking about Samantha Jones. We think we know why the missing publicist is such a big deal, and it doesn’t just come down to fans missing the character. Her reboot storyline fell flat because it was completely out of character and went against the original series’ canon.
In ‘And Just Like That…’ Samantha left New York after a dustup with Carrie
When Carrie Bradshaw, Miranda Hobbes, and Charlotte York returned in And Just Like That… a lot was different. Most notably, they had become a trio. Samantha Jones was not included in the series. The feisty blonde’s absence was connected to actor Kim Cattrall’s desire to retire the character completely after speaking negatively about her experience on the set.
To explain Samantha’s sudden departure, the writers moved her out of New York and over to London. They didn’t stop there, though. According to the storyline, Samantha left New York after fighting with Carrie over money. She was allegedly hurt by Carrie’s decision to end their professional relationship. Carrie claimed Samantha treated her “like an ATM.”
The duo was reconnecting when season 1 ended
Samantha’s absence was felt during the earlier episodes of And Just Like That…, but as the season wrapped up, there was light at the end of the tunnel. The former pals were reconnecting when season 1 of And Just Like That… ended. In fact, Carrie and Samantha met up, off-screen, of course, when Carrie traveled to Paris to spread Mr. Big’s ashes. In interviews following the season finale, Michael Patrick King revealed that Carrie and Samantha’s digital relationship would continue in season 2, but we don’t know at what level.
King did have a thought on how Carrie and Sam’s reconnection went off-screen, though. In June, King told Variety, “I think there was some Champagne. I think there was a grownup back and forth, and a love affair that they realized that something’s more important than being afraid to heal. I’m sure they had a great night.” It was nice to hear that things are looking up, but we still don’t love the season 1 storyline.
‘Sex and the City’ loyalists can’t stand Samantha Jones’ reboot storyline
While Samantha and Carrie will have mended fences by season 2 of the Sex and the City reboot, fans still feel a bit sour about how things went down. We are, too. Something about Samantha’s storyline didn’t sit right with us, and it still doesn’t. We could have lived without Samantha in the series if the writers hadn’t devised such an out-of-character explanation for her departure.
Sam was never obsessed with money and didn’t get her feelings hurt too often. She worked with Carrie for the price of a Cosmo during her early career and offered to loan her enough money to buy her apartment. We don’t buy that Samantha would have left New York and refused to speak to her oldest friends because Carrie “fired” her. It simply doesn’t track. We would have found it more palatable if the team behind And Just Like That… focused on Carrie and Mr. Big’s marriage leading to a rift. After all, Samantha was the only single lady in the group. The money issue felt very off-brand.
