And Just Like That… Continues to Lose Cast Members: Should the Show’s Third Season Be Its Last?

Sex and the City was a smash hit for HBO. Premiering in 1998, the series ran for six seasons, spawned two movies (although we’d prefer to forget that the second one ever came out), and a prequel series (The Carrie Diaries on The CW).

And while there was great excitement over And Just Like That…, the reboot was somewhat marred from the outset with the harassment allegations against Chris Noth, the lack of Samantha (Kim Cattrall), and the introduction of the polarizing Che Diaz.

The series has expanded its circle of friends from the original, bringing in Seema, Nya, and Lisa as foils and sidekicks for Carrie, Miranda, and Charlotte, respectively.

Long-time fans enjoyed seeing Anthony find a new partner and learning more about Stanford’s life in Japan. Season 2 of And Just Like That… also saw much growth from our leading ladies.

Carrie found and then lost Aidan, at least for the time being. But she also wrote a book about the loss of Big and bought a new “big girl” house, leaving her youth behind, all in the name of love. 

Charlotte rediscovered her love for art and running a gallery and found that she enjoyed working and achieving success for herself, not just for her family.

Miranda made huge strides, landing the internship of her dreams, being recognized by her boss, ending things with Che, meeting someone else, and finally becoming friends again with Steve.

In the wake of this progress, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, and Kristin Davis are attached to the show for Season 3, but we are starting to see the departures of some of the second-tier stars.

First, it was announced that Sara Ramirez’s Che Diaz would not return for Season 3 (and a great sigh of relief followed). And more recently, due to other projects, Karen Pittman’s Nya Wallace recently bowed out of Season 3 as well.

Both characters were in Miranda’s orbit more than anyone else’s. Therefore, their departures will have little impact on the larger group, and, given Miranda’s trajectory, they are less important to her going into Season 3.

Miranda will focus on her internship, not Columbia classes, and once she finds a new place to live, Nya Wallace will no longer be central to her arc.

As discussed previously, with Che and Miranda’s break-up, we’ve also moved on from their storyline, and we are likely to see a potential new love interest (Joy, the BBC producer) for Miranda.

Maybe her friendship with Steve will evolve enough for them to discuss the new woman in her life.

So, where will Season 3 take us? The series could have easily ended with Season 2. Yes, Carrie and Aidan are separated, but they’ve agreed to wait for as long as five years, so they are in a good place, and we could have been left with a minor cliffhanger.

Will the writers move the women forward or take them back? What are the possibilities for the new season? Here are a few ideas for Season 3, all in the name of progress and positivity.

Charlotte’s success at work should continue. A scandal or a negative storyline would not help her character’s development.

And we’ve spent a lot of time with Rock and their journey, so perhaps Harry could get a solid storyline and one that doesn’t involve his penis.

A college-related arc for Lily would be fun for the whole family. Perhaps there could be an admissions scandal at the school that Charlotte and Lisa might try to investigate. It’s always fun when those two are involved in hijinx.

It’s a stretch, but the writers brought up college toward the end of And Just Like That… Season 2 Episode 9, so that could carry through.  

If the plan is to keep Carrie and Aidan together, then there will have to be either a time jump or some radical growth from Aidan’s son Wyatt. Aidan’s concern for Wyatt was the reason for pressing pause on the love story.

Without moving five years in the future, Carrie will either be happy and single-ish, decide to move on from Aidan because she doesn’t want to wait, or they’ll have found a way to be together.

Maybe there are stories to be told about Carrie’s professional life. She already wrote a book last season, so there isn’t a lot of material to be mined from that perspective. Would a new direction for Carrie be welcomed? Perhaps a storyline about Shoe the cat (just kidding)?

Forward motion for Miranda would be a continued upward trajectory at work, more screen time with Steve, and a new relationship. But those storylines already started during Season 2, so Season 3 would potentially just be more of the same.

Maybe other great plots are being discussed in the writers’ rooms, and maybe there will be new guest stars.

Maybe Kim Cattrall will amaze us all and pop up now and then. Without some surprises, Season 3 could be a bit humdrum.

We all enjoy watching Carrie, Charlotte, and Miranda get together. And their antics, both together and apart, are always fun. But unless they pull a rabbit out of a hat, Season 3 should be the end.

As reboots go, this was successful. The Will & Grace reboot, which allowed the series to right itself many years later, also saw a three-season run. Here, there is no correcting of the original, and by most accounts, Season 2 was a slight improvement on Season 1.

Will Season 3 fall flat because no new stories are left to tell? If it does, then that guarantees it will be the last.

So, And Just Like That… Fanatics, what do you think lies ahead for Season 3? Is there anything you would like to see Carrie, Charlotte, and Miranda accomplish? Do you think the upcoming season should be the end, or are the ladies of NYC just getting started?

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Lucy Peel is a staff writer for TV Fanatic.

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