Sarah Jessica Parker talks familiar faces returning to 'And Just Like That...' season 2
Parker also revealed how Carrie's journey reflects that of her own mother.
Sarah Jessica Parker is opening up about the return of two fan-favorite "Sex and the City" characters on "And Just Like That…" season 2.
A teaser trailer for the upcoming season released in April showed John Corbett back as Aidan Shaw, a former flame of Parker's Carrie Bradshaw, and news broke last month that Kim Cattrall was reprising her role as Samantha Jones, one of the core four "Sex and the City" ladies.
"It was, I think, a really nice idea to celebrate our 25th anniversary, to have this surprise appearance [of Samantha]. And at least the content of it is still thus far a secret," Parker teased to Diane Sawyer in a new interview for "Good Morning America."
Cattrall was a main cast member for the entire six-season run of "Sex and the City" from 1998 to 2004 alongside Parker, Kristin Davis (Charlotte York) and Cynthia Nixon (Miranda Hobbes), and returned for both films, but not for "And Just Like That…" season 1.
As for Corbett, Parker couldn't help but smile when speaking about Carrie and Aidan's reunion.
![PHOTO: John Corbett attends the 48th AFI Life Achievement Award Gala Tribute celebrating Julie Andrews, June 9, 2022, in Hollywood, Calif. Kim Cattrall attends "Happy Clothes: A Film About Patricia Field", June 15, 2023, in New York.](https://i.abcnewsfe.com/a/faa2b571-b0fc-4219-8d04-0b8a64a6dbff/corbett-cattrell-gty-er-230619_1687211548378_hpEmbed_4x3.jpg)
"Two people spending time together after 10 years with the experiences of their recent lives and romantic entanglements and commitment, and marriages -- and he's got children," she noted. "They had such specific demands in the past, and Carrie was always struggling with trying to live up to those and always falling short."
Carrie and Aidan dated during the original "Sex and the City" series and he last appeared in the second film, released in 2010.
Aidan's return comes after the death of Carrie's husband, John James "Mr. Big" Preston (Chris Noth), during the first season of the revival series.
![](https://i.abcnewsfe.com/a/31a7cf8a-99a1-4940-aa44-cfd42c92c73d/interview2-abc-ml-230620_1687270358872_hpMain_16x9.jpg)
As it turns out, Carrie's story about moving on after the loss of a spouse reflected the journey of Parker's real-life mother, who lost her husband of more than 50 years, Parker's stepfather Paul Giffin Forste, last September.
Parker called the loss of Mr. Big "a momentous event that changed the course of her [character's] life" and presented Carrie with the challenge of "how to be single again," something she said her mother -- and likely many other women -- have faced.
"She's alone for the first time in her entire life," she said of her mother, whom she said she asked to come live with her and her family, though she said her mother turned down the offer.
![](https://i.abcnewsfe.com/a/17fd6dc2-e10e-4063-8b78-e8f44ebe26eb/sjp-3-gty-er-230619_1687211235390_hpEmbed_2x3.jpg)
The "Hocus Pocus" actress explained, "She finally had the courage one day to say to me, 'I have never lived alone. I've never not had to fix dinner for somebody or think about somebody else's meal or do laundry or wag my finger at somebody or fight over what to watch on television. So, thank you, but I really like to live alone.'"
"You cannot be prepared," Parker added. "Loss is unique. Grief is unique. Loneliness is unique. Independence is unique."
"And Just Like That…" season 2 premieres June 22 on Max.