When Sex and the City premiered in 1998, Sarah Jessica Parker’s onscreen chemistry with Chris Noth quickly captured the hearts of viewers who went on to root for their characters, Carrie and Big, throughout the show’s six seasons and two movies.
And their undeniable rapport transcended their TV alter egos into the real world, with the stars becoming good friends who would share their admiration for one another in interviews as well as publicly support each other’s work projects away from SATC.
Chris previously revealed that he and Sarah Jessica initially bonded over their shared love of musical theater, telling Vogue: “I think we bonded over Stephen Sondheim. I’m not a musical theater actor, I mean, in my dreams, I’d love to be.”
“I’ve listened to Sweeney Todd a million times, and she’s a very astute student of musical theater, so when I started singing Sweeney Todd songs, she joined right in,” he continued. “And that was the beginning, as they say in Casablanca, of a beautiful friendship.”
And that friendship was evident for all to see, with the two sharing sweet social media exchanges over the years and Sarah Jessica being spotted supporting Chris as she loyally watched the Broadway shows that he starred in.
So when Sarah Jessica and Chris signed up to professionally reunite on the set of last year’s Sex and the City revival series And Just Like That…, it isn’t surprising that they appeared to be thrilled to be working together again.
While it was originally reported that Chris wouldn’t be reprising his role of Big, it was confirmed in May 2021 that he actually would be returning, and he and Sarah Jessica seemed giddy as they shared photos from the set to Instagram.
In August, Chris posted a picture of himself and Sarah Jessica in bed together as Carrie and Big, writing in the caption: “Just like the old days!”
Sarah Jessica playfully commented at the time: “We overslept. Again.” Meanwhile, she shared a sweet photo of Carrie and Big gazing lovingly at one another as she gushed: “These 2. I bet they stay out late tonight.”
And Just Like That… premiered in December, and fans’ excitement for a Carrie and Big reunion proved to be short-lived, as Big was killed off in the very first episode.
And just one week later, on Dec. 16, Chris was accused of sexual misconduct by two women.
The Hollywood Reporter published the initial allegations against the actor, with one of the women claiming that Chris had raped her in his Los Angeles apartment in 2004. The other said that she was sexually assaulted by him in a New York City club.
They told the publication that they’d chosen to speak up now because seeing Chris in the SATC revival had “stirred painful memories” for them.
Chris vehemently denied the allegations at the time, saying: “The accusations against me made by individuals I met years, even decades, ago are categorically false. These stories could've been from 30 years ago or 30 days ago — no always means no — that is a line I did not cross.”
“The encounters were consensual. It's difficult not to question the timing of these stories coming out. I don't know for certain why they are surfacing now, but I do know this: I did not assault these women,” he added.
But just days later, three more women came forward. One told the Daily Beast that Chris had sexually assaulted her in a Manhattan restaurant in 2010. A representative for Chris said at the time that Chris “denies this as ever happening and has no idea who this woman is.”
Lisa Gentile, a singer-songwriter, alleged that Chris “sexually victimized” and “sexually abused” her in 2002, four years after they’d first met. Lisa recounted inviting him to her Manhattan apartment and “quickly [becoming] uncomfortable” as he became “more aggressive.”
"I kept pushing his hands down while he was pushing mine up. I was trying to get him to stop," she said. “He then forced my hands to pull up his shirt exposing his belly and then even harder pushed my hands down towards his penis. I finally managed to push him away and get out of his grasp and yelled, 'No, I don't want this.’”
Lisa alleged that Chris “became extremely angry and started screaming,” calling her a “tease” and a “bitch” before leaving. “I was afraid to come forward because of Mr. Noth's power and his threats to ruin my career,” she added.
And Heather Kristin, an actor who worked as Kristin Davis’ stand-in on Sex and the City for several seasons, accused Chris of “toxic” and “disgusting” behavior in a piece for the Independent. She claimed that Chris had inappropriately touched her, groped her, and repeatedly made her uncomfortable on set.
Soon after the first two allegations came to light, Sarah Jessica and her AJLT costars, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin, issued a joint statement on social media that shared their support for the women involved.
“We are deeply saddened to hear the allegations against Chris Noth,” they wrote. “We support the women who have come forward and shared their painful experiences. We know it must be a very difficult thing to do and we commend them for it."
It was also reported at the time that Sarah Jessica was “livid” and felt “blindsided” by the allegations against Chris.
A source told Us Weekly: “She is fiercely protective of Carrie Bradshaw and livid that she and everyone else at the show has been put into this position. It is not about the money, but rather her legacy. Carrie was all about helping women and now, under her watch, women are saying that they have been hurt.”
“She takes the power of being Carrie Bradshaw very seriously. With great power comes great responsibility and although SJP knows this is about him, not her, she feels like she has let everyone down,” they continued.
And now Sarah Jessica has revealed that she hasn’t spoken to Chris at all since the allegations came out in December.
In a new interview alongside her husband, Matthew Broderick, in the Hollywood Reporter, Sarah Jessica was asked about her initial reaction to the women’s claims “as a producer.”
Sarah Jessica was clearly hesitant in her response as she admitted that she wasn’t sure if she was even ready to talk about what her former friend had been accused of.
“I don’t even know if I’m ready to talk about it,” she told the publication. “But I don’t think… I wasn’t reacting as a producer. I should have worked on this because I’m just… It’s just…”
After the actor trailed off, she was asked if she’d spoken to Chris since, to which Sarah Jessica bluntly replied: “No.”
Following the allegations, a Peloton advert that starred Chris was removed from the brand’s social media pages and he was dropped from TV series The Equalizer. A $12 million deal to acquire his Ambhar tequila brand was also withdrawn by Entertainment Arts Research, and he was dropped by his talent agency, A3 Artists Agency.
It was later revealed that Chris had been removed from the season finale of And Just Like That…, with his character originally slated to appear in a fantasy-like sequence where he’d appear beside Carrie as she scattered his ashes in Paris.
While the change was initially reported by TVLine, Cynthia confirmed that Chris had been edited out of the episode during an interview with Entertainment Tonight.
“I think we were very lucky that those changes were able to be made,” she said. “And I think we are very proud of our show.”
