“Sex and the City” has come quite far from its relatively humble 1998 beginnings. Six seasons, 94 episodes, two movies and who knows how many pairs of Manolos later, and now a reboot titled “And Just Like That . . . “ has hit the small screen! Though it’s not exactly garnering much praise. HBO Max debuted the first two shows of the highly-anticipated ten-episode mini-series on Thursday to what, ultimately, amounted to a very loud collective social media womp-womp. Drawing massive pans from viewers, fans and critics alike (not to mention Peleton), the show is being called everything from “cringe” to a “hate watch at best” to a “bloated, laugh-free comedy.” Yikes! Not that the jeers aren’t well-deserved.
The reboot sees leading lady Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) now working as a podcaster (because writing books is so 2010) and – major spoiler alert! – mourning the loss of longtime love, John James Preston, aka Mr. Big (Chris Noth), who dies of a heart attack in episode one. To say the storyline is depressing is a vast understatement – and an odd directional choice considering the trying times the world has been faced with over the past year and a half. Instead of glamorous locations, high fashion, endless cosmos and escapism, “And Just Like That . . . “ is supplying audiences with dramatic death scenes, funeral plans and endless tears. As James Poniewozik of The New York Times succinctly opined, “If you were expecting a frothy cocktail to take your mind off the world’s troubles, the premiere throws that drink in your face.” And, for the record, it’s not anywhere near as satisfying as the drink-throw Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall) tosses Richard Wright’s (James Remar) way in season five!
Speaking of Samantha, the show certainly feels lacking without the acerbic-witted publicist, whose absence is brusquely explained away in a brief scene. (Jones moved to London following an argument with Carrie and no longer returns any of the women’s calls.) Another element largely lacking? The Big Apple, which, during “Sex and the City’s” run, was a fundamental component to each and every storyline. Despite Parker’s promise to TMZ that “And Just Like That . . . “ would feature “New York City as a fourth character,” that has not yet been the case, with the city barely figuring into the background of the first two episodes. While fans will, no doubt, be excited to reunite with the women’s various apartment interiors, all of which are sets that were re-created for the reboot at Steiner Studios in Brooklyn, only a handful of actual Manhattan locations have been featured thus far. Read on for a list of them. But be forewarned – there are more spoilers ahead!
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Image Credit: HBO Max Episode one, titled “Hello It’s Me,” opens at a chic restaurant named Clee where Carrie and her two remaining BFFs, Miranda Hobbs (Cynthia Nixon) and Charlotte York (Kristin Davis), are shown engaging in their typical chat and chew routine. Unfortunately for fans, Clee doesn’t actually exist. In reality, filming of the scene took place at the Whitney Cafe. Located on the ground floor of the Whitney Museum of American Art at 99 Gansevoort St. in the Meatpacking District, the casual eatery opened earlier this year in the space that formerly housed Andrea and James Gordon Restaurant at Untitled, which shuttered in March 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The site’s modern interior (a James Beard Award for Restaurant Design winner!) was left intact following the transition and was showcased beautifully by “And Just Like That . . . “ But while shown to be a full-service restaurant onscreen, as described by the Whitney Museum website, the establishment currently operates as a “grab-and-go cafe.”
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Image Credit: HBO Max Carrie records her “X, Y and Me” podcast with co-hosts Che Diaz (Sara Ramirez) and Jackie Nee (Bobby Lee) at 1251 Avenue of the Americas in Rockefeller Center. The 1971 International-style property, formerly named the Exxon Building, was designed by architect Wallace Harrison and, at 750 feet, is the second tallest structure in the famed complex. However, it largely flies under the radar. As explained on Wikipedia, “Despite being one of the 100 tallest buildings in the United States, 1251 Avenue of the Americas is almost impossible to see from more than just a few blocks away as it is flanked on all sides by buildings over 500 feet tall. The result is that even though 1251 Avenue of the Americas is approximately as tall as the tallest buildings in cities such as Boston or Minneapolis, it has almost no presence on the New York City skyline.” But now that it is a “SATC”-related filming location, hopefully, it’ll be getting its due!
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Image Credit: HBO Max “And Just Like That . . . “ seems to be throwing out hints that Miranda is struggling with alcohol addiction. We are first given a glimpse of this at Hell’s Kitchen institution Smith’s Bar, where Hobbs attempts to grab a glass of Chablis at 10:45 a.m. before starting her first day of a master’s degree program at Columbia University. A local stalwart for over 60 years, Smith’s, located at 701 8th Ave., initially opened its doors in 1954. After a brief shuttering in 2014, it was revitalized by none other than actress Hayden Panettiere’s father, Skip, who opted for an “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it approach!” to his takeover. As he explained to DNAinfo, “Why don’t we just keep it the same, so everything in New York doesn’t get ruined.” He even reinstated Tuesday Karaoke nights, noting that his famous daughter might pop in and sing on occasion. No word on if that has transpired yet, but Smith’s now has another claim to fame as Miranda’s mid-morning watering hole!
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Image Credit: HBO Max For the Columbia scenes, producers chose not to film on the esteemed university’s Morningside Heights campus but instead found a suitable substitute in the House of the New York City Bar Association. Located in Midtown at 42 W. 44th St., the historic Neo-Classical-style structure was designed by architect Cyrus L. W. Eidlitz in 1896 to serve as the headquarters for the growing legal organization. Standing six stories with a lobby fashioned out of marble, the handsome building (which I identified thanks to a tip from location scout extraordinaire Nick Carr) has a very academic feel, making it a perfect stand-in for Columbia. The property is also an oft-filmed spot, boasting cameos in everything from the 2015 film “Bridge of Spies” to 2001’s “Vanilla Sky” to several episodes of “Person of Interest.”
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Image Credit: HBO Max At the end of “Hello It’s Me,” the gang attends a piano recital for Charlotte’s daughter, Lily Goldenblatt (Cathy Ang), at what is purported to be the Manhattan School of Music. (“The Manhattan School of Music, Carrie! The Manhattan School of Music!”) Though the institution is a real place, the “And Just Like That . . . ” cast and crew instead headed to the Lyceum Theatre, located at 149 W. 45th St. near Times Square, to shoot exterior scenes. The Beaux Arts-style beauty, with its unique scalloped roof, was originally built in 1903 and has the distinction of being the oldest continually operating theatre on the Great White Way. And it is no stranger to the screen, having also appeared prominently on the television series “Smash.” (Interior recital scenes were lensed at the actual Manhattan School of Music, inside the gorgeous Gordon K. and Harriet Greenfield Hall.)
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Image Credit: HBO Max In episode two, titled “Little Black Dress,” Charlotte and Carrie have an ill-fated meeting at a funeral home that Carrie deems is “all wrong” for Big’s memorial. Filming of the scene did not take place at an actual funeral parlor, though, but an elegant Upper East Side property known as The Astor House. The five-story structure, located at 130 E. 80th St., was originally built in 1927 as a private residence for Vincent Astor, son of John Jacob Astor IV. Designed by Mott B. Schmidt in the Neo-Classical style, the townhouse currently serves as the headquarters for the New York Junior League and is also a popular event venue. While Carrie claims that Big would have hated the place, its façade is, ironically, very reminiscent of the Zeigler House, which was used as the interior of the penthouse he bought for her in the first “Sex and the City” movie.
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Image Credit: HBO Max After leaving the funeral home, Carrie walks by The East Pole, a farm-to-table restaurant located inside a historic Upper East Side brownstone about a mile from The Astor House at 133 E. 65th St. As she passes, she sees a man that vaguely resembles Big eating on the front patio and becomes nostalgic for all that she has lost.
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Image Credit: HBO Max Carrie and her friends say goodbye to John at New York’s “only chic place for a funeral,” the Greene Naftali Gallery located at 508 W. 26th St. in Chelsea. Originally established by art dealer Carole Greene and art patron Gloria Naftali in 1995, the contemporary space features a sleek, simple white-on-white color scheme, which perfectly encapsulates Carrie’s minimalistic, modern vision for Big’s final (non-floral) send-off.