12 Facts About Kristin Davis
When "Sex and the City" first aired back in 1998, fans the world over were obsessed with the lives — not to mention the wardrobes — of the Jimmy Choo-obsessed fashionistas girlbossing their way through the Big Apple. Unsurprisingly, the show made stars of its veritable quartet, with Kristin Davis, aka Charlotte, admitting that the fandom was comparable to Beatlemania in its heyday. "There were these enormous crowds, people shouting out our names," she told Marie Claire in 2008. "We'd like totally have a fantasy about how we were The Beatles. I'm George! I've got the hair." Thanks to the sequel "And Just Like That...", we are once again reunited with the formidable gal pals (sans Kim Cattrall) as they navigate the roaring 2020s.
Perhaps due to the undeniable cultural impact of "Sex and the City" and its spinoffs (both on the big and small screen), Charlotte will always be the role for which Davis remains the most famous. Amidst all the messiness and chaotic energy of the pals, Charlotte was the lone Pollyanna. But there's so much more to the actor than Ms. York Goldenblatt.
Though Charlotte is a prim and proper old money princess, Davis is nothing of the sort. The Southern Belle had to work hard to get where she is today, and has a wide variety of eclectic interests and hot takes (including some surprising views on the role that made her a star, but more on that later). Here are 12 facts about Kristin Davis.
Before Sex and the City, Kristin Davis appeared in a classic sitcom
A year before she landed the role of Charlotte in "Sex and the City," Kristin Davis was already making her mark on the comedy landscape. In the Season 8 "Seinfeld" episode "The Pothole," she played the infamous toothbrush girl, i.e., Jenna, Jerry's girlfriend who uses a toothbrush that has landed in the toilet.
As gross as it may have been, scoring the role was a dream come true for the up-and-coming star, who was encouraged to branch into comedy by her manager. "I must have auditioned for Seinfeld five times," she told GQ. "For all different parts. Every girlfriend that year. So I remember going into that audition being super cranky. ... But I really, really wanted to be on the show. And I finally got on it!"
Just in case anyone had any doubts, Davis confirmed in an interview with "Today" that she would never emulate the actions of Jerry's on-screen girlfriend. She was thrilled to reprise her role for the Season 9 episode "The Butter Shave," this time her toothbrush girl having hooked up with Jerry's grating frenemy, Bania. "The reason I got to go back was because Jerry and I had this conversation about how here he was doing this show about people who live in New York, yet they never run into their exes!" she explained. "Normally in New York you always run into your exes ... So that's why I got to go back, I was just so excited."
The role of Carrie was pitched to Kristin Davis
We can't imagine anyone other than Sarah Jessica Parker playing the indomitable Carrie Bradshaw. Likewise, Kristin Davis was perfectly cast as "Sex and the City's" perennial optimist Charlotte. But casting directors had a very different vision of Carrie in mind. Indeed, Davis was initially asked to audition for the role of the sassy sex columnist.
During an appearance on the "And Just Like That...The Writers Room" podcast, Davis recalled the auditioning process back in 1998. At the time, the actor explained, "Sex and the City" was the talk of the town, with women in the industry vying for a role in the series. Consequently, she was overjoyed when series creator Darren Starr approached her to try out for a part. He told her that he was eager to cast Parker as Carrie, but was unsure if she was available, so asked Davis to read for her. But she was rather hesitant to take on the now iconic role. "I remember one line in the script it said, 'Carrie has the body of Heather Locklear and the mind of Dorothy Parker,'" she recalled. "And I was like, 'That is adorable, but I can't play that part. Like, what're you thinking?'"
Feeling that the character was too disparate from her own lived experiences, she identified with the more reserved Charlotte. "I can't pull that off, I'm not that girl," she told The Telegraph. "I've got to play [Charlotte] because I know her."
The Sex and the City actor is politically active
Charlotte may be the conservative anomaly among her carefree friends, but the actor who plays her couldn't be more detached from those values. Speaking to The Telegraph, Kristin Davis credited her upbringing in the South for shaping her political ideology, having rebelled against the pervasive conservative milieu. Moreover, she criticized the way in which the right has seemingly warped the meaning of "woke" into something negative. "I feel like it has been weaponized," she said. "And it's unfortunate — because it really just means being educated about what other people are going through. Why is that a bad thing?"
A supporter of UNHCR and a Goodwill ambassador, she has been a vocal advocate of refugees. In 2017, she met with Rohingya refugees at a camp in Bangladesh and denounced their displacement by the Myanmar government.
In addition, she is a passionate environmentalist. Of particular interest to the star is elephant conservation. She first became involved in the cause following a trip to Kenya in 2009, where she rescued an elephant that had become orphaned due to poaching. "I took this elephant to a wildlife trust and became obsessed with elephants in general," she told Parade. "They're intelligent. I can't count the times I've been in Kenya ... But I had felt that people didn't know about the poaching crisis. We tried to tell people about it, but they didn't care." As such, she has campaigned against ivory production, having witnessed elephants being tortured for their tusks.
Kristin Davis has two adopted children
In 2011, Kristin Davis adopted her first child, Gemma Rose, who is Black. During an appearance at the Greene Space (via Stylist) in 2016, Davis acknowledged the advantages she's been granted by society as a white person. "I have lived in white privilege. I thought I knew before adopting my daughter that I was in white privilege, that I understood what that meant," she conceded. Davis also noted that the Trump presidency led her to fear for her daughter's safety as a Black child, adding that it's especially vital she builds her up consistently. "I have to tell her, 'Your curls are beautiful, your black skin is beautiful... You're powerful,'" she added.
In 2018, she adopted a son, who is also Black. During an appearance on "Red Table Talk," she shared that after she adopted her daughter, her eyes were truly opened to the lived experiences of systemic racism. Subsequently, she emphasized the importance of her children having strong Black role models in their lives.
Speaking to The Times, she opened up about the difficulties of discussing Black Lives Matter with her children, being a white mom. "You're having to educate them about the world, but also somehow let them feel that they can be empowered to still try to change it," she explained. "You don't want to frighten them to the point where they won't feel like they can go out in the world and shake it up as we need them to do."
Kristin Davis was criticized for having fillers
Pretty much every female celebrity of a certain age has been subjected to undue scrutiny regarding their appearance. Subsequently, Kristin Davis has candidly discussed the barrage of hate she received due to her augmented appearance. The actor has been open about her use of lip fillers and Botox, the results of which she admits have been hit and miss. "I have done fillers and it's been good and I've done fillers and it's been bad," she told The Telegraph. "I've had to get them dissolved and I've been ridiculed relentlessly. And I have shed tears about it. It's very stressful."
In an interview with ET, she highlighted the absurd double standard that women in the entertainment industry face: on the one hand, they are expected to look young forever; on the other, they are mocked for seeking out aesthetic treatments to maintain their youthfulness. "Like, you can't not age. The only way you cannot age is to not be alive," she quipped.
Therefore, she said that she sought to alleviate the shame and stigma surrounding women pursuing fillers and Botox, arguing that it's, unfortunately, often women who heavily scrutinize each other's looks, rather than uplifting one another. "I think part of the reason that people are not more open is because there is such shaming put on you largely by other women," she reflected. "It's so sad. We have enough problems as it is. We don't need to shame each other."
She found aspects of Sex and the City problematic
One of the biggest retrospective criticisms of "Sex and the City" is its lack of diversity. The show was, after all, set in New York, a cosmopolitan city seemingly whitewashed for the series. Kristin Davis attributed the show's white-centric milieu to an absence of writers of color working on its original incarnation. "We didn't have racial diversity within that writers' room," she told The Times. "So that's part of the whole crux of it: like you can't write stories that you don't know, and you shouldn't really write stories you don't know."
But the program has also been criticized for allegedly perpetuating sexist stereotypes. This is something that Davis was all too aware of, to the point that filming certain scenes made her toes curl. A particular source of ire was Charlotte's placid nature. "All these crazy things would happen to her and I'd ask, 'Why doesn't she get mad?,'" she told The Telegraph. "Who doesn't get mad, especially if people scream profanities in her face during sex. Do you remember that [episode]? I really hated that." She added that she only filmed said controversial sex scene because co-star Cynthia Nixon encouraged her to, deeming it comical. Davis, however, didn't see the funny side to her character being degraded in bed.
Consequently, she voiced her concerns with the writers, but Michael Patrick King argued that Charlotte's compliance was central to her reserved persona (in stark contrast to the actor playing her).
The A-list exes of Kristin Davis
Unlike Charlotte, who waltzed down the aisle twice, Kristin Davis has no interest in marriage. Kristin Davis has, however, dated a number of A-listers. In 2001, she was spotted getting cozy with Alec Baldwin in New York, though she hasn't commented on the rumored relationship. Three years later, she was linked to British actor Damian Lewis, a pairing that ended up being the source of much contention. When Davis spoke to the press about her alleged relationship with Lewis, the actor was furious. "I am not going out with Kristin and never have done," he insisted, per Contact Music. "I can't believe that she would talk about our relationship when there isn't one." Despite this, a profile of Lewis in The Scotsman refers to Davis as one of his exes.
In 2012, she began dating "The West Wing" creator and Oscar-winner Aaron Sorkin. At the time, sources told E! News that Davis and Sorkin, both being intellectuals, immediately gravitated towards one another. The couple called it quits soon after, with Davis reportedly focusing on raising her daughter.
Though Davis is unwilling to discuss her relationship status, she has emphasized that she's not interested in casual flings. "I mean, I'm just terrible at casual sex, OK, just terrible, like terrible," she told The Times. These days, she is going her own way and she likes it just like that. As she once told InStye (via geocities), "I don't believe you need a man to be happy."
The actor once thought she wouldn't make it to 30
It was no easy feat for Kristin Davis to find herself in the enviable position she's in now. From a young age, she struggled with alcoholism. In her aforementioned interview with Marie Claire, she suggested that she may have been genetically predisposed to the illness, which runs in her family.
"I really didn't think I would pass 30. ... Maybe it's because I was drinking so much as a youth," she explained. "I drank a lot when I was a teenager and I don't drink any more, because that's when I thought, you know, I'm gonna end up a car wreck." At 22, she decided to seek help, acknowledging that she didn't want an early death. She has been sober ever since.
Appearing on "The Jess Cagle Show," she credited a love of acting with helping her make the difficult journey to sobriety, as her illness was hindering her ability to perform. Accordingly, she encouraged others suffering from addiction to open up about their experiences rather than feel shame. "Everyone who is in that place or who is struggling with mental health or anxiety and depression thinks that they're in it alone because that's part of the disease," she explained. "So I think it's important to remind everyone that you never know what people are going through."
If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
Kristin Davis is a Broadway star
Testament to her love of the theater, Kristin Davis once told People Now (via ET Canada) that her secret fantasy is to star in a Broadway musical of "Sex and the City." While there are currently no plans for such an adaptation, there's no denying that Davis has the thespian acting chops at the ready should her dream ever materialize.
In 2012, she made her Broadway debut in Gore Vidal's "The Best Man," playing Mabel Cantwell, the wife of a conservative politician. Though she scored the role soon after welcoming her daughter, Davis revealed that Broadway was much better suited to her parental duties than TV and film work. "It's actually [a] really great schedule for a mom," she told People. "I'm able to be with her and have a job, which is rare and wonderful."
Chatting to Broadway.com, Davis said that she relished taking on the part of Mabel, a decidedly different role from the one that made her famous. "It's great, because I grew up doing theater and playing big characters," she explained. "For a long time, I've been playing more quiet, controlled characters, so in a lot of ways, it's very freeing." Backstage praised her performance as the politician's wife, arguing that she was better suited to the part than her predecessor, Kerry Butler. The outlet emphasized the depth that Davis bestowed the ditzy character, who may otherwise have been reduced to the one dimensional appendage of a powerful man.
Kristin Davis has passionately called out industry ageism
Ageism against female performers is arguably still rampant in Hollywood. As such, "And Just Like That..." is undoubtedly an anomaly for our TV screens. Shows that focus on the lives and loves of women in their 50s are a rarity, and this is something that Kristin Davis knows all too well. In her interview with The Times, she revealed that she's seldom offered roles of substance these days. Accordingly, she throws away the majority of scripts that come her way, as they are invariably reductive and dismissive of her as a middle aged woman. "I find that the most boring and offensive," she declared of such roles.
She also criticized the lack of positive representation of women in their 50s in the media, fighting back against the problematic notion that 40 is the end of the road for women. "Life is not over at all, and it's so ridiculous that we do not have more representation," she emphasized. "I feel like people have this idea that you're done, you're finished, your world view is done, your friends are done and that your relationships are done. No, no, nooooo."
In an interview with "Today," she hit back at ageist critics who reduced her and her "And Just Like That..." co-stars to their appearances, constantly comparing them to their younger selves. "It's okay that you don't look like you did when you were 35," she said. "But it's hard. And I know it's hard for everyone."
Kristin Davis has suffered from hair loss
Kristin Davis is famed for her long, dark tresses, but she's actually suffered from hair loss. In a 2017 interview with WWD, she acknowledged that while her hair appeared enviable on the outside, it was proving rather difficult to maintain, sometimes resembling straw. In time, she noticed that her thick locks were growing increasingly thin. "It was very fine, like it had gone away," she explained. "There just was hardly any hair there. .... When I tried to do something or had to go somewhere I was like, 'where is my hair?'" After meeting with hair stylist Luke O'Connor, who offered her some Volaire products, she noticed that her tresses regained their bounce. Thereafter, she became the brand's global ambassador.
Though Davis did not discuss the origin of her hair loss, it's possible that stress may have been a contributing factor. Studies have shown that stress is a major cause of thinning hair among adult women.
Indeed, in an interview with New Beauty, Davis opened up about struggling with mounting stress in the past, which was largely caused by the pressures of being an actor. "Give up the stress!" she exclaimed when asked what advice she would give to her younger self. "The stress is all simply wasted energy. ... There were times in my career where I worked out to lose weight for a part, and that's a very non-healthy situation to be in ... and not enjoyable and not a way to live."
Inspired by Charlotte, Kristin Davis launched a fashion line
In 2008, Kristin Davis launched a clothing line inspired by her "Sex and the City" counterpart. The collection saw her collaborating with Belk, a retailer close to her heart due to her Southern background. "In the South, there is a feminine quality that often gets lost in high fashion. Belk understands," she said, per Marie Claire, adding, "Charlotte dresses in a very feminine way, and I love her playful nature." The collection, which aimed to be somewhat size inclusive, was in stores for over a year before being discontinued.
Despite her sartorial ventures, Davis is not as big of a fashionista as Charlotte (the actor admittedly favors sex over shopping). As such, she has confessed that she gets rather anxious when folks spot her in public. Chatting to StyleCaster in 2010, she conceded that she could often see the horror in her fans' eyes when she greeted them dressed in less than impeccable attire. "They're like, 'Oh no, what is she wearing?'" she joked.
Additionally, in stark contrast to Charlotte, she's not a fan of wearing high heels. In an earlier interview with The Telegraph, she lamented that "Sex and the City" had led to women donning uncomfortable stilettos in an effort to emulate the stylish New York quartet. "I do feel guilt about the heels," she admitted. "It did seem we were trying to say to women, 'You should be wearing heels like these.' But we definitely weren't."