10 Sex and the City secrets you never knew

31 March 2016

By Fashion Quarterly

Insider secrets from Sarah Jessica Parker herself.

Wow..has it really been 12 long years since Sex and the City wrapped? But we still have so many questions! Like why the hell did Carrie cheat on Aidan? And were all of those cocktails they drank actually real?! But most importantly, will this third film ever come off? Thankfully we caught up with Sarah Jessica Parker, whose latest film All Roads Lead to Rome is available on DVD now, for an exclusive chat and she cleared a few things up for us…

1. The cocktails were fake

And there we were thinking the cast kicked back during filming and enjoyed Cosmopolitan after Cosmopolitan. But alas, “The Cosmopolitans were made of water and food colouring or watered down cranberry juice,” Sarah Jessica (who plays single mother Maggie in All Roads Lead to Rome who goes on a Tuscan road trip) told us. “Ginger ale was a substitute for Champagne and red wine was always just grape juice.”

2. They did eat all that brunch food

A lot of the time we were more fixated on all the amazing brunch food Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda nibbled on than the guys they were talking about. But surely they didn’t actually eat it all? So wrong. “I always ate the food,” says SJP. “I don’t like food to sit in front of an actor and for it to not be eaten. It’s silly. Cynthia Nixon (Miranda) and I always ate everything and it didn’t matter if it was cold because it was our job. We didn’t need fancy food, we ate whatever could be made quickly – you don’t want to be ordering caviar!”

3. Big and Carrie weren’t meant to end up together

If you were unhappy about how the series ended (Big telling Carrie she was “the one”), then you’ll be interested to know that they weren’t actually meant to be. The show’s creator Darren Star recently revealed, “I think the show betrayed what it was about, which was that women don’t ultimately find happiness from marriage. Not that they can’t. But the show initially was going off script from the romantic comedies that had come before it. That’s what had made women so attached.” He added, “At the end, it became a conventional romantic comedy. But unless you’re ther

4. SJP had a no-nudity clause in her contract

You may have noticed that Carrie was the only one out of the four leads who always wore a bra in bed? That’s because she had a no-nudity clause in her contract. She has said, “I was not comfortable with nude scenes, scenes with sex toys, or vulgar language – so I didn’t do any. My character Carrie, kissed a lot of men – but that’s as far as it went.” Huh.

5. Cynthia Nixon is actually blonde

Cynthia dyed her hair red to play Miranda because that’s what colour the character was in Candace Bushnell’s books. She has since spoken of her relief to be able to go back to her natural blonde. Meanwhile Carrie was meant to be brunette but 24 hours before the pilot was shot, producers changed their minds.

6. SJP kept all the clothes (well most of them)

When the show finished Sarah Jessica kept about 70 per cent of her Sex and the Citywardrobe. She has said, “I’ve kept everything that didn’t come directly from a designer or wasn’t rented. Yes, I have it in archive. I have literally everything!” We’re assuming the tiny sequin pants from Carrie’s disastrous catwalk appearance are in there.

7. SJP wore heels 18 hours a day

Carrie loved shoes. Once she said, “I’ve spent $40,000 on shoes and I have no place to live? I will literally be the old woman who lived in her shoes!” As a result Sarah Jessica had to wear shoes for up to 18 hours a day during filming. Ouchies.

8. Carrie’s tutu cost $5

The famous ballet tutu that Carrie wore in the opening credits cost only $5 in a bargain bin.

9. Remember Pete? He was scared of Aidan

The first dog to play Aidan’s dog Pete was actually scared of actor John Corbett (How? Why?!) And so they had to fire him and get a replacement.

10. Alec Baldwin was meant to play Matthew McConaughey’s role

The episode Escape from New York could have been so different. Matthew McConaughey’s part was originally written with Alec Baldwin in mind. He turned it down. Producers then offered it to George Clooney who couldn’t do it, and then Warren Beatty who also declined. Thankfully Matthew said yes!