Kim Cattrall Reveals the Real Reason She Skipped ‘Sex and the City’ Revival

Sex and the City fans have longed wished for Kim Cattrall to return as Samantha Jones. But after a successful HBO series and two films amid the fanfare, she opted out. Still, fans, and even the show’s creator, held out hope. But when plans for a third film and eventual spinoff series And Just Like That were announced sans Cattrall, fans knew the dynamic they grew to love was over. The spinoff series moved forward without Cattrall. Despite the controversy surrounding Chris Noth’s sexual misconduct allegations, the show remained a hit. Cattrall is opening up about why she stuck to her guns and left Samantha and co in the dust.

In a new interview with Variety, Cattrall explained that her decision to leave the franchise was simply because she outgrew it. “It’s a great wisdom to know when enough is enough,” she explained. “I also didn’t want to compromise what the show was to me. The way forward seemed clear.” As for how she learned of the HBO Max reboot, she says she found out via social media, but she wasn’t surprised she was not asked to return. “I made my feelings clear after the possible third movie,” adding that she’s concluded from this experience “that really the greatest compliment I could have as an actor is to be missed.”

But she has no regrets. She admits to struggling in her career, even not having health insurance at one point. Still, it wasn’t enough to make her want to return. “I don’t ever want to be on a set and not want to be there,” she said. 

She also doesn’t have any ill-will toward her former co-stars but refers to them as her acquaintances. “As difficult as it was, and as scary as it is to stand up and not be bullied by the press or the fans or whomever—to just say, I’m good. I’m on this track. It was so great working with you. I so enjoyed it, but I’m over here. was so great working with you. I so enjoyed it, but I’m over here,” she said firmly.