The Cast Of And Just Like That Blasts Meghan McCain's Assessment Of The Reboot
"And Just Like That..." has been nothing if not controversial since the "Sex and the City" reboot premiered in December. Many fans have blasted "AJLT" for its storylines, including Miranda Hobbes, played by Cynthia Nixon, leaving her husband Steve Brady, played by David Eigenberg (via She Knows).
Other viewers were dismayed when Mr. Big died on the first episode, while plenty of reviews chastise the HBO Max series for trying too hard to be politically correct. As Time points out, to some, "casting of a new woman-of-color friend for each member of the central trio came off as conspicuously compensatory." The outlet goes on to say, however, "it was also, admittedly, preferable to the alternative: more whitewashing of a city where white people make up less than 43% of the population."
Among critics of the show's efforts to tell a more diverse narrative is former "The View" co-host Meghan McCain, who shared her take in her Daily Mail column. In a December op ed, the controversial star said "AJLT" "died of wokeness." Among her supporting claims, McCain wrote that the retelling of "SATC" was "misguided" and said, "The problem with the new series is the clumsy attempt to reformat the show into the woke and puritanical times we are living in."
McCain specifically notes that having non-binary character Che Diaz, portrayed by Sara Ramírez, on the show is "Because it's so boring and un-evolved to be a straight white woman."
AJLT stars are not letting Meghan McCain's criticism faze them
Now, months after McCain wrote her story for the Daily Mail blasting their show, the stars of "And Just Like That..." are responding. Speaking to Andy Cohen on his SiriusXM show over the weekend, Nixon and Nicole Ari Parker, who plays Charlotte York-Goldenblatt's mom friend, Lisa Todd Wexley, defended the direction writers took by reflecting diversity in their characters' storylines (via People).
About the show, Nixon said, "Because people know it so well, they have enshrined it in nostalgia. But this is a show that has always pushed every kind of boundary. I think that that's what's so magnificent about the new show — about how many different directions we're going with that, and pushing boundaries and shaking people up."
Parker said it best, slamming McCain by saying, "Comments like that say more about the person saying them." She added, "What's too much? Maybe in your living room or when you step outside, it looks the same as inside, and you go to the grocery store and it's the same. Maybe it is too much for you. For these characters in New York City, it's not."