SEX AND the City's loyal fanbase tuned in to see which of the show's original cast members returned for the HBO spinoff And Just Like That.
While Nicole Ari Parker joined Sarah Jessica Parker and the gang as a series regular, Kim Cattrall briefly reprised her role as Samantha Jones.
Did Nicole Ari Parker replace Kim Cattrall on And Just Like That?
After Nicole Ari Parker was cast as the fourth lead character on And Just Like That, she debunked rumors that insinuated she was chosen to replace Sex and the City alum Kim Cattrall.
"It's so secretive and I have to be so careful," she told .
"When it first came out that I was replacing the Samantha character — which is not true at all, so please write that — I have been yelled at, and I’ve also been attacked with love.
"I’ve been photographed in places I should never be photographed. The fans are so excited and over the top.
"I had some idea of that because I am one of those fans, but I had no idea [the extent of it]."
Although Kim previously refused to take part in AJLT, she agreed to appear as Samantha in a cameo for season 2.
The program's developer Michael Patrick King revealed to the above-mentioned outlet: "I did not start this season thinking Samantha would ever appear in the show.
"Now, my Samantha has always been in And Just Like That. And in actuality, the audience saw Carrie texting with her and she sent flowers [in season one].
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"I know Kim said that she’d hung up the Samantha wardrobe, and then some magic happened behind the scenes because all of a sudden, there was a possibility of it happening."
King added: "Let me tell you, I like as much of a surprise in the show as I like as a viewer.
"I didn’t even know that this was happening when I started to write season two.
"But Samantha is always in my mind as a character that exists in the world."
What did Kim Cattrall say about And Just Like That?
Before she signed on for her brief AJLT appearance, Kim weighed in on whether she would do the SATC reboot.
She said to Piers Morgan: “Not for me. That was part of turning 60.
“That was a very clear moment of how many years do I have left and what do I want to do with it? What haven’t I done?
"I feel that the show was the best when it was the series and the bonus was the two movies.”
Similarly, in 2019, Kim told the she would “never” return to the franchise, adding, “You learn lessons in life and my lesson is to do work with good people and try and make it fun.”
Who is Nicole Ari Parker?
Nicole is an American actress best known for starring in the acclaimed independent film The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love.
She also appeared on Boogie Nights, Remember the Titans, Black Dynamite, and Almost Christmas.
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Nicole starred in the Showtime drama series Soul Food which earned her five NAACP awards.
Her latest roles include starring in Fox’s primetime series Empire and joining Chicago P.D. as Deputy Superintendent Samantha Miller.