The Truth About Sarah Jessica Parker And Chris Noth's Relationship
After the iconic series' original premiere on HBO in 1998, "Sex and the City" has since set the standard for fashion, love, and romance on television. But could it be the end of an era for fans dreaming of that Carrie and Big type of love? Sarah Jessica Parker, who played the outgoing and shoe-obsessed New York City writer Carrie Bradshaw, and Chris Noth, who played Carrie's love interest (and eventual husband), have continuously captured fans' hearts over the years through their musings and playful on-and-off screen relationship. To much delight around the world, Carrie and Mr. Big's relationship progressed on-screen this past year with the premiere of the "SATC" reboot, "And Just Like That...," on HBO Max.
But just like that, the comedy-drama's long-awaited comeback has been steeped in controversy after multiple women came forward to share sexual assault allegations against Noth, per The Hollywood Reporter, leaving the future of "And Just Like That..." Season 2 in limbo. SJP has since come forward to show support for Noth's alleged victims, so let's take a look at their current relationship and the beginning of Parker and Noth's decades-long friendship.
SJP & Chris Noth's instant on-screen chemistry was undeniable
Not long after creator Darren Star bought the rights to Candace Bushnell's "Sex and the City" anthology for a reported $50,000 in 1996, casting soon began. That's when the chemistry between Sarah Jessica Parker as "Carrie Bradshaw" and Chris Noth as "Mr. Big" or "John James Preston" really started to show. Star originally envisioned Alec Baldwin in the role of Carrie's lover in the city, but Noth impressed him right off the bat. "I don't really watch 'Law & Order, but I met with Chris Noth and thought he was perfect," the producer told Entertainment Weekly (via Us Weekly) in March 2016.
Noth played Carrie's love interest for six seasons on "SATC" before the two finally decided to tie the knot at the end of the first movie. But, in dramatic fashion (much like the pair's iconic love affair), Big leaves the wedding, ultimately leaving Carrie alone at the altar. By the end of the second "SATC" film, fans seem to think the two will live happily ever after. SJP opened up to Interview about Carrie and Big's dynamic on-again, off-again relationship in October 1999, saying, "It's a very tortured and complicated and, in the end, quite heartbreaking."
Casting director Russell Gray told Cosmopolitan back in 2018 that Carrie and Big — and, by extension, SJP and Noth — were meant to be, saying, "I believe 100 percent that every single person that was in the pilot, everybody backed 100 percent."
Could SJP and Chris Noth's friendship be over 'just like that'?
Chris Noth broke the internet on August 12, 2021 when he posted a since-deleted photo from the set of "And Just Like That..." on Instagram. Posting a photo of him and Sarah Jessica Parker in bed with the caption, "Just like the old days!" Parker was quick to share her own thoughts on reuniting, posting an Instagram photo of the pair embracing in character. "These 2," she wrote. "I bet they stay out late tonight." As diehard fans know (or SPOILER ALERT), Noth's time on the "SATC" sequel was short-lived after Mr. Big dies of a heart attack in series' premiere. In addition, Noth will no longer appear in the series finale, as was initially planned, amid sexual assault accusations made against him by multiple women. He was reportedly set to appear in a fantasy sequence where Carrie reunites with Big while visiting Paris to scatter his ashes (via Variety).
Noth said in a previous statement to Rolling Stone the "encounters were consensual." In December 2021, Variety revealed that a fifth person had come forward that month to accuse the star of sexual assault. His co-stars spoke out for the first time since allegations were made, issuing a joint statement (via Cosmopolitan), which read: "We support the women who have come forward and their painful experiences." Thus, with SJP making her support for Noth's alleged victims known, fans can't help but assume that the former on-screen lovers are on the outs in real life "just like that..."