Sex and the City reboot needs intersectional feminism and self-awareness, university professor says

A university professor has said that the Sex and the City reboot needs to be “intersectional” and “self-aware” in order for it to be a success.

And Just Like That, which premiers on Thursday 9 December, follows the lives of iconic characters Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon) and Charlotte York-Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis) as they navigate their 50s.

It will be the first time the characters have reunited since the second Sex and the City film, which was released in 2010.

Now, Birmingham City University sociologist, Dr Kadian Pow, has revealed how she hopes the writers will have made the series relevant for the modern era.

“As an ardent fan who consumed every episode of Sex and the City (SATC), and the feature films, I was at peace with that media franchise ending. But, And Just Like That… appears to be the reboot I did not know I wanted. But I do, with some caveats,” she said.

“Twenty years have passed. The characters have grown older and so have we as their audience. I want to see both humour and pathos of what it means to be women in their 50s, not just in relation to men and sex, but in social interactions with millennials and Gen Z.

“Just because the SATC characters are older doesn’t mean they have nothing to learn from those younger than them.”

Dr Pow goes on to explain why she doesn’t want to see Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda struggling with money.

“Realistic financial woes are not a part of Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda’s lives,” she pointed out.

“I am not looking for struggle, just self-awareness around their class positioning. The series can still be luxe, but some authentic juxtaposition with other economic realities would be refreshing and honest.”

Dr Pow also referenced some of the series’ shortcomings when it came to diversity.

“Let’s be real, SATC was not about race and intersectionality,” she wrote before recalling one episode in particular.

“I shudder now when I think about the infamous scene between Samantha and a group of Black transgender women in the alley behind her new loft in New York’s Meatpacking District. That would not fly today!”

As for the new castmembers, which include Sarita Choudhury, Nicole Ari Parker, and Karen Pittman, Dr Pow said: “I applaud the decision to add Indian, Black and Latin characters to the cast.

“I would like to see those characters have full, nuanced lives and not be portrayed simply as facilitators of life lessons for the three central white female characters. If the feminism isn’t intersectional, I don’t want it. Because it won’t be real.”

And Just Like That… premieres on Thursday 9th December on HBO Max, Sky Comedy and NOW.

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