Sex and the City's reboot, And Just Like That was a major flop. Fans weren't happy about the "forced woke-ness" in the script, especially the Irish-Mexican, queer, and nonbinary Che Diaz (played by Sara Ramirez) who was labeled "the worst TV character in a decade." Still, fans are curious to see what happens in season 2.
Though Kim Cattrall has made it clear that we won't be seeing her as Samantha Jones in the upcoming season, Deadline just confirmed that John Corbett is reprising his role as Carrie Bradshaw's (Sarah Jessica Parker) ex-fiancé, Aidan Shaw. Here's what we know about his return.
John Corbett Will Have Multiple Episodes As Aidan In 'And Just Like That' Season 2
According to Deadline's Nellie Andreeva, Corbett is "set for a substantial, multi-episode arc on the second season" of AJLT. Reps for the actor and HBO Max refused to comment, but fans are excited about the news. "I hope this is true! I waited all of season 1 for Aidan to show up and was disappointed when he didn't," wrote a Redditor. "I know not everyone wants this, but as a big Carrie/Aidan supporter I couldn't be happier." However, some think it's "a desperate attempt to win back fans who saw what a s--t show the first season one." One even said: "AJLT is my version of eating cake out of the garbage."
Corbett's character has been a longtime fan favorite, so it's no surprise that fans want him back. But after what happened in AJLT's first season, many fear that he would just be forced back into the story. "Gosh I loved Aiden. He was my dream guy during the original airing. They did him good when Carrie ran into him at the end," explained a fan. "They went the absolute wrong way in the movie making this good man into a cheater but I feel like we can erase the second movie as a fever dream. Now they're going to destroy whatever fond memories I have of him with this season and I'm mad." However, they added that they're "still going to hate watch it during work as background noise."
John Corbett Previously Joked That He'd Be In 'And Just Like That' Season 1
In April 2021, Corbett joked that he was going to be in season 1 of AJLT. "I'm going to do the show," he told Page Six at the time. "I think I might be in quite a few." He added that he has fond memories of his SATC co-stars. "I like all those people, they've been very nice to me," he shared. HBO declined to comment back then. But the Rebel star had a lot to say about the show. He even weighed in on the tension between Cattrall and Parker, saying that he never noticed it on set. "I only worked with Sarah Jessica Parker. I think I had one scene with all the girls," he said.
"They were always cordial," Corbett continued. "Cordial with me. I got to know the other girls because when you show up for work, you've got to wait a few hours while they finish up a scene, but we always had nice chats and hugs. I never saw it or heard about it." In 2018, his co-star Jason Lewis — who played Samantha's lover, Smith Jerrod — also said that he didn't pay any attention to the feud. "I didn't really think much of it at all. People like to make mountains out of molehills and I didn’t really pay that much attention to it," he told Us Weekly at the time.
"I don't pay much attention to derogatory rancor if I can avoid it. We've got enough of it floating around the world, so I don't try to promote and I try to pay attention to it very little," continued the Tribute Star. Two years later, Lewis seemingly sided with SJP. "I haven't spoken to Kim since then, to be honest,' he explained. "We haven't fallen out, but I've made no secret of the fact I love Sarah and she was only ever great to me, so I think the way she was treated was unfair. I'm all about being nice, so if you can't say something nice, don't say it."
Why John Corbett Wasn't Cast In 'AJLT' Season 1
In February 2022, Parker told Watch What Happens Live that Corbett had apologized for joking about his appearance on season 1 of AJLT. "It was fun. It was fun for him to say that," she said of the actor's stunt. "When he actually reached out, very kindly, because he's nothing if not a gentleman, and apologized for doing that as a joke, and then I was like, 'No, no, no, it's a free country first of all.' And I thought it was kind of delightful and kind of fun." After the season's finale that month, executive producer Michael Patrick King revealed that the reason they didn't cast Corbett was that it "just felt like this was a lot for Carrie."
"This season was a lot," King continued. "We wanted to get her through [Big's death] and into the light—the last episode is called, 'Seeing the Light.' We wanted to get her out. [Aidan's return] is a big storyline that everybody at home wrote that we had never intended." In the same interview, SJP said that there's room for Corbett in season 2. "I think he would be… I mean, I'm not going, yes, all of it's possible," she said.
