Years before Sarah Jessica Parker signed on to expand the “Sex & The City” universe by starring in “And Just Like That…,” she expressed mixed feelings about a different “SATC” spin-off. A prequel that aired on The CW from 2013 to 2014, “The Carrie Diaries” follows a teenage Carrie Bradshaw (AnnaSophia Robb) balancing her fledgling career in The Big Apple with high school romance.
Asked what she thought about someone else playing her signature character in 2013, the “SATC” star said, “I’m not sure. You know, I think it’s one of those tests of your generosity. She [Robb] is a lovely girl and I want her to feel good about it, but it’s … odd.”
Overall, “The Carrie Diaries” received an uneven critical response and didn’t attract an audience large enough to keep it on the air past Season 2. Of course, the reaction wasn’t entirely negative; in fact, author of the original “Sex & The City” book Candace Bushnell described “The Carrie Diaries” as “a really good show.” (And — fun fact — it turned out to have a future Oscar nominee among its ranks: Young Carrie’s primary on-again-off-again love interest was played by a then-unknown Austin Butler.)
Sex and the City deliberately kept Carrie’s childhood mysterious
Sarah Jessica Parker and Michael Patrick King – showrunner for “Sex & The City” as well as “And Just Like That…” — have openly discussed why they’ve almost always avoided delving into Carrie’s family history in their version of her life.
“There is a sort of alternate universe in which she lives, in which backstory doesn’t exist,” Parker told The Huffington Post. “We’re not endowing her with qualities because, or saying she behaves this way because a parent … parented her this way and that’s why [she had] this response. [This way of portraying the character] … kind of gives you more liberty to tell story.”
It certainly helps reduce intra-franchise historical dissonance. For example: In “SATC” Season 4, Episode 17, “A Vogue Idea,” Carrie notes that her father left her mother and all she has left of him is a picture. Meanwhile in “The Carrie Diaries,” Carrie is raised by a single father after her mother passes away from cancer. Technically the shows take place on different timelines, so the differing backstories don’t break the canon — This is not like that time “And Just Like That…” killed off the same character twice. (Or, if you believe the showrunners, simply appeared to do so.)