What the ‘Sex and the City’ Cast Looked Like Then vs. Now

SJP was the face—and literally the voice—of Sex and the City. She was honored for her work with two Emmy Awards (Outstanding Comedy Series as a producer in 2001 and Outstanding Lead Actress three years later) and four Golden Globes for Best Actress in a Comedy Series. Her post-Carrie career continued to shine with the HBO series Divorce as well as her own footwear collection, SJP Collection. Her Instagram is also a delight.

Sex and the City marked Kristin’s second time working with showrunner Darren Star. The two previously worked together on Melrose Place (remember Brooke Armstrong?) for two seasons before Star bought the rights to Candace Bushnell’s book. In 2014, Kristin issued a public apology for encouraging fans of the show to wear heels. “I do feel guilty about the heels,” she told the Sunday Telegraph. “It did seem we were trying to say to women, ‘You should be wearing heels like these.’” She added, “I wear heels so rarely now. It hurts when I do—you have to get in training for them, and it takes a lot of practice.”

After famously turning down the role of Samantha more than once, Kim finally agreed to take on the new-at-the-time HBO series. In 2003, she won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress, which of course made for a fabulous moment. In the years since the show’s series finale, Kim has continued to star on a number of TV shows, her most recent being FOX’s Filthy Rich. Sadly, she did not join the rest of the cast in And Just Like That…and yes, there’s been a LOT of drama surrounding that.

Then: Cynthia joined SATC as a seasoned Broadway actor with minor TV and film credits. In 2004, the same year the final season aired, she took home the Emmy for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series after six seasons of playing Miranda Hobbes. Now: Cynthia ran for governor of New York in 2018. Although she lost to disgraced ex-governor Andrew Cuomo, her platform focused on important issues including income equality, universal health care, and putting a stop to mass incarceration.

Regardless of your opinion on whether or not Carrie and Big belong together, there was no doubt that Chris’s portrayal of her on-again, off-again lover was one of the pillars of the show. His post-SATC career has included long residencies with Law & Order: Criminal Intent and, of course, The Good Wife.

It’s still hard to believe after all these years that the guy from My Big Fat Greek Wedding was also Aidan. John’s post-SATC work has included episodes of United States of Tara, Parenthood, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, and Portlandia.

Tragically, Willie passed away from pancreatic cancer in September 2021. Sarah Jessica Parker, along with the rest of the SATC cast, posted touching tributes to the late actor on social media. On the original SATC, he played Carrie’s incredibly fabulous and beloved BFF Stanford. After the show ended, he appeared on everything from CSI: Miami to Pushing Daisies to Hawaii Five-0.

Miranda’s forever good guy was the epitome of the ideal partner. That is…if you’ve been able to forget what Steve did in the first SATC movie. These days, you can still see David Eigenberg on TV. He’s one of the firefighters on Chicago Fire.

Charlotte and Trey were never meant to be together, but we’ll always have the memory of the cardboard baby. Since leaving the #PlaidLife, Kyle has been busy playing the mayor of Portland on Portlandia, the Doctor on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and, most recently, reprising his role as agent Dale Cooper on the Twin Peaks revival.

Bunny made Charlotte’s life a living hell and was THIS CLOSE to taking the only good thing Trey gave her: the apartment on Park Avenue. Frances has been in the business since the ’50s, so she knows a thing or two about what it means be a scene stealer. Her post-SATC work includes episodes of The Simpsons, The Closer, and Parenthood.

Like Charlotte, fans fell in love with Harry not long after he started sweating on her long overdue divorce papers from Trey. After the show wrapped, Evan went on to star in episodes of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and Californication. When he’s not busy with acting or writing, you can find him in a state of doubt. No really: According to Evan’s Twitter bio, he is an “inspirational pessimist.” Good to know!

Since his Sex and the City days, Mario has continued his stand-up career and appeared on game shows like Match Game and The $100,000 Pyramid. In 2017, he portrayed Anthony Scaramucci for Comedy Central’s The President Show and even surprised the real Scaramucci on an episode of The View.

Remember Skipper, the 20-something “website creator” who briefly dated Miranda and suddenly disappeared during season 2? He was played by Ben Weber, who hasn’t really been in much since SATC. In 2018, Ben told Cosmopolitan that it’s also a mystery to him. “I have tried to figure this out,” he says, adding that the show likely moved on from the “hopeless romantic” along with having characters talk into the camera. Somewhere, though, Ben thinks Skipper is living The Life as a “total Bitcoin billionaire.” Sounds lovely.

Lynn already had a stellar résumé (Manhattan Murder Mystery, Law & Order) before joining SATC as Miranda’s beloved housekeeper, nanny, and confidante Magda. In a 2018 interview with Cosmopolitan, Lynn revealed that Magda was supposed to have a boyfriend on the show, but it never worked out. She also entertained the idea of Magda still working: “I might be taking care of the grandchildren of Miranda.” Lynn passed away in February 2020 at the age of 86.

At what point did you realize Smith was hot? Was it when he and Samantha were boning on a chair on a bed? Or perhaps it was when he became the Absolut Hunk in Times Square? These days, Jason can be seen on NBC’s supernatural drama Midnight, Texas. He plays a fallen angel named Joe Strong.

Ron has been everywhere since Berger broke up with Carrie on a Post-it note. He’ll never live that one down, but if you care to have a Ron Livingston TV/movie marathon one of these days, consider any of the following: Drinking Buddies (2013) and episodes of Boardwalk Empire (2013), Search Party (2016), Loudermilk (2017), and Tully (2018).

Arguably Samantha’s worst boyfriend, Richard was portrayed by seasoned TV and film actor James Remar, who got his start on Hill Street Blues and Miami Vice. Since SATC, James has appeared on episodes of Grey’s Anatomy, Gotham, and The Shannara Chronicles.

Long before SATC, Mikhail made a name for himself thanks to his illustrious contemporary ballet career. In a 2014 interview with Vanity Fair, he had nothing but appreciation for the show’s fans, despite one minor detail. “It is a great series; it’s fun and everything, but of course more people saw me in Sex and the City than if I had danced every day for the last 20 years.”

Blair had a five-episode arc playing Dr. Robert Leeds, Miranda’s love interest during her break from Steve. Unfortunately, the two were never meant to be, despite Robert’s giant “I Love You” cookie, which Miranda gobbled up. Starting in 2016, Blair starred in Quantico playing Owen Hall for three seasons.

Kat made her TV acting debut on Sex and the City, playing 13-year-old Jenny, Samantha’s party client who wants to have the best bat mitzvah ever. Of course, she’s famously known for being one of the two girls in 2 Broke Girls. The show bid adieu in 2017 after six excellent seasons.