After seven episodes into “And Just Like That” season 2, fans finally witnessed Aidan Shaw’s (John Corbett) anticipated return to the “Sex and the City” franchise.
Now that Carrie Bradshaw’s (Sarah Jessica Parker) beloved ex is back in the mix, fans are wondering what storyline will ensue given that Aidan “was Carrie’s best boyfriend” in the original series, said “AJLT” writer, Samantha Irby, on the the show’s official “And Just Like That… The Writers Room” podcast. “He is the one who should have won… He and Carrie had such an insane chemistry, it was like jumping off the screen. They just looked so good and perfect.”
With that said, and the time that’s passed between them, the writers and showrunner, Michael Patrick King, decided to give Corbett “a makeover” to bring Aidan back in “a new way.”
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“We cut his hair, we took the turquoise jewellery away. We told him he had to be rock-hard when he came back,” King said. “It was a story choice: If we’re bringing somebody back, we have to find some way to bring him back in a new way.
“So here we are now, bringing Aidan back, again, and we have tricks up our sleeves as to how he is new and what we can actually do with the storyline considering — and it’s a very big consider — all the water under the bridge, all the pain they’ve already been through, how much Carrie has hurt him in the past — according to fan boards… twice — and how badly he took the break up,” King continued.
— Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Discovery
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In the original series, Carrie could never quite commit to Aidan as her heart ultimately belonged to Mr. Big, whom she had an episodes-long affair with in season 3, while dating Aidan the first time around. Between her commitment issues and his trust issues over her affair, they eventually called it quits for good, moving on with their respective lives — Aidan married fellow furniture designer, Kathy, and Carrie and Big famously tied the knot. Later on in the franchise, Carrie bumped into Aidan twice — once in season 6 and again in the “Sex and the City” movie sequel, which marked the last time Aidan appeared in the franchise.
Now that he’s made his “AJLT” debut and left things off on a steamy note with Carrie in the latest episode, it appears the two are back at it.
— Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Discovery
On the podcast, King shared that next week’s eighth episode, will reveal more details about Aidan’s life, stressing that nothing about the furniture designer extraordinaire is ever casual.
“The tone immediately should be different to people,” King said of his return. “Carrie is like, ‘I want to go on a date with him.’ Right up front. She’s not downplaying it. She’s like, ‘I said yes to the date. I knew it was Valentine’s Day. I want to have a date with him.’”
— Photo: Craig Blankenhorn/Max
— Photo: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Discovery
“Carrie points out in the scene that it’s been 13 years since she’s even seen Aidan. Which is kind of shocking to think about the stuff we’re about to pull off, which is John Corbett, Sarah Jessica in a scene after [13] years of an absence,” he continued. “That never happens, because no one plays a character for 25 years. Sarah Jessica did.”
Only time will tell if Carrie and Aidan’s rekindled romance will last; but, according to King, “everybody smells a good thing here,” he said of their reunion.
“And Just Like That” streams new episodes Thursdays on Max. Four episodes remain, with the season 2 finale streaming August 24.