Don't get your hopes up on seeing Kim Cattrall on And Just Like That..., the sequel series to the HBO show Sex and the City. This news may not be shocking, as Cattrall has been pretty open about her disinterest in revisiting the role of Samantha Jones. While the other stars of the original show returned for the HBO Max revival, Cattrall remained adamant that she wouldn't be a part of it, leaving Samantha's fate up in the air.

It would have been easiest to simply write Samantha out of the new show entirely if Cattrall never coming back was understood by everyone involved. However, Samantha has maintained a presence in the show with the ways other characters speak about and even interact with her. These interactions might be happening off-screen, but And Just Like That... does make it clear that Samantha is still around, even if the audience can't see her.

Keeping Samantha around (in a way) might have some viewers wondering if maybe Cattrall could end up coming back as Samantha after all. However, that's not the case, as series creator Michael Patrick King recently told Variety. As King explains, the problem of Cattrall refusing to play Samantha again dates back to a planned third Sex and the City movie, which fell apart once Cattrall backed out.

"Kim didn’t want to do the movie. Kim had finished playing Samantha, and despite conversations back and forth she just said, 'Yeah, I don’t want to do this.' So she pulled out, and I thought, 'Well, then there’s no movie.' ... It was disappointing at the time, because I had a good story and I love writing Samantha. You have to look at the reality of something: You can literally not make an actress play a part."

King stresses how much he loves the Samantha character and appreciates how he can keep her in the series in an off-screen way. And he is totally content with that as well, as there is no hope from the And Just Like That... team of bringing back Kim Cattrall. Here's what King had to say when asked if the "door was open" for Cattrall to appear on the show.

"No. Just like there was no thought that Kim would ever participate in And Just Like That, because she’s said what she had said. The only place I participate in magical thinking is in fiction. You take people at their word, and you’re a smart producer — you don’t back yourself into a corner. Magically thinking, it’s great to have Samantha. I have no realistic expectation of Kim Cattrall ever appearing again."

Related: And Just Like That Writers Address Latest Fan Complaints of the Reboot Concerning Steve’s Storyline

Kim Cattrall Can Be Seen On Hulu's How I Met Your Father

How I Met
Hulu

She won't be coming to And Just Like That..., but Kim Cattrall has picked up another big role on a separate streaming service for Hulu's How I Met Your Father. The former Sex and the City star plays the narrator and future version of lead star Hilary Duff's character, playing a role similar to that of Bob Saget on the original How I Met Your Mother series. You can find the show streaming now on Hulu.

As for And Just Like That..., a season 2 renewal hasn't yet been greenlit, but King is hoping to continue the story with more seasons. You can watch the first season on HBO Max.