Evan Handler Calls Kim Cattrall's ...And Just Like That Cameo 'Great'

Charlotte York's on-screen husband said that, despite the fact that she wasn't physically near anybody else during the process, Kim Cattrall's brief appearance on Season 2 of the "Sex and the City" reboot "...And Just Like That" is "great."

Evan Handler, who has played Harry Goldenblatt — doting husband to Kristin Davis' Charlotte — since the fifth season of HBO's hit series "Sex and the City," told People Magazine that the complicated cameo went pretty well. "I think it is great. I do," Handler told the magazine at the Ed Asner & Friends Celebrity Poker Night on June 3, 2023. "Apparently, [her cameo] was shot in the garage somewhere with no contact with anybody, so the only place I have to welcome her is into my living room when it airs on television."

Another interesting tidbit Handler dropped was that apparently, actors on the show didn't find out about Cattrall's reapperarance as the iconic Samantha Jones any sooner than the rest of the world did. "I learned it the same day you did," Handler told People. Despite not interacting with Cattrall at all during her brief return, it's clear Handler is happy to see this enormous character return, even if it's just for one scene — and he's certainly not alone.

It was announced on June 1, 2023 that, despite the fact that Cattrall has repeatedly distanced herself from anything to do with "Sex and the City" or "...And Just Like That" in recent years, she would briefly appear in the reboot's second season. This appearance, as Handler indicated, did come with a whole lot of strings.

As Variety initially reported and as Handler confirmed, Cattrall filmed her one scene completely separate from stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, and Davis, as well as showrunner Michael Patrick King. She was also styled for the scene by Patricia Field — who is currently working with original "Sex and the City" showrunner Darren Star on "Emily in Paris" — who did not return to work with Parker, Nixon, Davis, or King for "...And Just Like That."

The scene is described as a phone call between Parker's Carrie Bradshaw and Samantha, who agreed to meet up via text message at the end of the first season. Fans probably didn't think anything would ever come of that moment considering Cattrall's outright aversion to working with Parker, a feeling she's been pretty clear about since appearing in "Sex and the City 2" in 2010... but as it turns out, Samantha is coming back.

So why is Cattrall's return to her role as Samantha Jones such a big deal? Well, she's been in a feud with Parker for years now, and it shows no sign of slowing down. For years, it was been rumored that Cattrall's refusal to come back for a third "Sex and the City" movie is the reason why one never happened — and in 2017, Cattrall confirmed that to DailyMailTV. "It's quite extraordinary to get any kind of negative press about something that I've been saying for almost a year of 'no,' that I'm demanding or a diva,"  the actress said. And this is really where I take to task the people from 'Sex and the City,' and specifically Sarah Jessica Parker, in that I think she could have been nicer ... I don't know what her issue is, I never have."

The two have been at apparent odds for years; when Cattrall's brother passed away in 2018 and Parker shared condolences on social media, Cattrall responded harshly, calling Parker a "hypocrite" and saying she was "exploiting" a tragedy. Then, when it came time for "...And Just Like That," Parker was open about why they didn't ask Cattrall to participate: "We did not ask her to be part of this because she made it clear that that wasn't something she wanted to pursue, and it no longer felt comfortable for us, and so it didn't occur to us."

Cattrall certainly was clear for years about her feelings on the matter. In an interview with The Guardian in 2019, while also saying she spent too long playing Samantha Jones, she dropped this iconic line: "I don't want to be in a situation for even an hour where I'm not enjoying myself." Subtlety may not be her strong suit, but she certainly got the point across.

With all of this in mind, it was definitely tricky for the "...And Just Like That" writers to write out a character as vital to this franchise as Samantha Jones (a character many have pointed out usually puts the "sex" in "Sex and the City"). In a fairly clumsy move, the writers immediately establish that Samantha has moved to London... but as it turns out, there's a lot more to it.

A conversation between Carrie and Miranda (Nixon) reveals that Samantha didn't just move to London, but cut off her three former friends entirely after a professional disagreement with Carrie. After several years of working together, Carrie could no longer justify keeping Samantha on her payroll as her book publicist and ended their professional relationship, at which point Samantha apparently moved abroad and stopped speaking to Miranda, Charlotte, and Carrie all together. "I always thought the four of us would be friends forever," Carrie tells Miranda, following it with a much harsher take on everything: "I thought I was more to her than an ATM."

Samantha isn't the only original cast member who didn't stick around for the reboot; Chris Noth briefly appears in the first episode as Carrie's husband Mr. Big, but after a heart attack on a Peloton, he dies at the very end of the installment. Having Samantha still "exist" in the world, though, was a harder pill for fans to swallow, and her presence is only marked by flowers that Samantha sends to Big's funeral, as well as the text message she exchanges with Carrie at the end of the season.

Cattrall has certainly stayed busy since her time on "Sex and the City," though. Beyond her stage work — a lot of which happens to occur in London, as it happens — Cattrall has worked steadily on both the big and small screen, and is currently spending her time on a different reboot of a super-popular comedy.

Cattrall plays the adult version of Hilary Duff's Sophie on Hulu's reboot "How I Met Your Father" — which modernizes the same concept as CBS' "How I Met Your Mother" — which is in its second season now, and she's also appeared in shows like HBO Canada's "Sensitive Skin," Peacock's "Queer as Folk" reboot, the Paramount+ anthology "Tell Me A Story," and Fox's short-lived drama "Filthy Rich." She stars alongside Robert De Niro, Leslie Bibb, Anders Holm, and comedian Sebastian Maniscalco in "About My Father," which is in theaters now... and before too long, fans will be able to watch her play Samantha Jones again, even if it's just for one short scene.