“And Just Like That...” Creator Michael Patrick King Has Opened Up About The Extreme Negative Reaction To Season 1 And How He's Taken It On Board For Season 2
Unfortunately, Che “I’ve Done A Ton Of Weed” Diaz is still very much involved in the upcoming season.
In 2021, Sex and the City fans could barely contain their excitement when the hit show’s sequel series And Just Like That... finally hit our screens.
But it didn’t take long for the backlash to start, with many viewers left disappointed when protagonist Carrie Bradshaw’s husband, Big, was killed off in the very first episode.
And the critical discourse grew as the series went on, with it being argued that And Just Like That... was actually nothing more than an attempt to fix its predecessor’s problematic past.
Sex and the City originally aired between 1998 and 2004, and in recent years it has come under scrutiny for its incredibly white cast and all-around lack of diversity.
In stark contrast, And Just Like That... was branded “a woke box ticking exercise” after it introduced a whole range of new characters and storylines that examined everything from race to sexuality and gender binaries.
As Charlotte came to terms with her oldest child revealing that they are non-binary and now go by the name Rock, Carrie was educated on the difference between cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation by her new friend Seema, and Miranda struggled to say the right thing after commenting on her Black professor’s hairstyle.
But it was Carrie’s new coworker, Che Diaz, that proved to be the most divisive introduction of all, with And Just Like That... viewers vocal in their disdain towards the character, who ended the series in a relationship with Miranda.
Amid the backlash, the actor who plays Che — Sara Ramirez — said that they are “very aware of the hate that exists online.”
They went on to add to the New York Times that the show’s creator, Michael Patrick King, and the writer’s room were the ones ultimately responsible for the character. Sara concluded: “I have to protect my own mental health and my own artistry. And that's way more important to me because I'm a real human being.”
Meanwhile, Michael suggested that the negative response to Che was only due to viewers being upset over the breakdown of Miranda’s marriage to Steve. He told Variety: “People are going to look for who’s the villain.”
“Che is, in my estimation, honest, dangerous, sexy, funny, and warm,” he went on. “What everybody else is projecting on that character has a lot to do with what they want to have happen to Miranda in the story. It has so little to do with Che."
And with Season 2 premiering next month, showrunner Michael has insisted that they have taken the criticism surrounding Season 1 on board ahead of the next installment.
While he didn’t mention Che directly, Michael said in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly that he is aware of the criticism that the series faced.
“It means we didn’t do the same thing,” he said of the response. "If we had tried to do Sex and the City now without any of the changes we made, it wouldn't have been current in my mind.”
Even still, Michael went on to confirm: “A lot of Season 2 is an address to the reaction to Season 1 in my thought process.”
“I didn't see one tweet and go, 'Oh my God, I've got to change everything,'" he clarified. "It's a zeitgeist feeling."
Some of the changes that Michael teased include Season 2 being more “light” after the darkness surrounding Big’s tragic death, and New York City getting more of a look in.
“There's so much New York. It's really more city than I've ever seen in the show,” he said. “When Sex and the City was good, we showed four individuals all experiencing different versions of the same question, which is, how do you fulfill yourself? That's what we're doing now with even more characters."
But unfortunately for the biggest Che Diaz haters, this character isn’t going anywhere. Michael teased that Miranda and Che will start the season in Los Angeles together before returning to the East Coast.
The creator also doubled down on his decision to bring back Carrie’s old SATC love interest Aidan in Season 2 of AJLT — a move that sparked fierce backlash when it was confirmed earlier this year.
"I started Season 2 knowing I was bringing Aidan back, and I felt very strongly about that,” he said, before revealing that Aidan will be single upon his return because Carrie is not “a home-wrecker.”
Although I’d argue that Big’s ex wife Natasha would probably disagree with that claim.
Elsewhere in the new interview, Michael admitted that brands have become warier about lending their products to the show after Big famously died after doing a Peloton workout in Season 1.
The character had a fatal heart attack after riding on the branded bike, which saw real-world Peloton’s stock plummet and prompted urgent damage control within the company.
Peloton even issued a statement that pointed out that Big’s “extravagant lifestyle” of cigars, steaks, and alcohol as well as his medical and family history would have been responsible for his death — not the Peloton bike. They claimed: “Riding his Peloton Bike may have even helped delay his cardiac event.”
So it is understandable that other companies are now erring on the side of caution, with Michael admitting: “This season, every time we wanted to use a product name, people were like, 'And how are they gonna use it?' We want [SJP] to wear Gucci. 'How is she gonna wear it? Nothing bad's gonna happen to our product, is it?'"
But thankfully Carrie probably won’t be suffering death by Gucci any time soon.
