Inside the feud that killed Sex and the City

RUMOURS of a deep rift have dogged the stars of Sex and the City for years. Now the franchise is officially over, they’re finally ready to admit it to fans.

KIM Cattrall dropping out of a planned third Sex and the City film has officially killed the franchise — and it’s now being reported that it all happened just days before the movie was about to start filming.

Page Six reports that the final instalment in the series was due to start filming this week, until Cattrall’s demands halted production.

“People were expecting to go to work. It’s true. They were supposed to start shooting [on Tuesday]. Kim [Cattrall] was negotiating and was asking for things the studio wouldn’t go for, so they pulled the plug,” Page Six quotes an insider as saying.

Sex and the City 3 was due to start filming this week.

“It’s no secret Kim isn’t a fan of Sarah Jessica Parker and [producer] Michael Patrick King,” another insider told Page Six.

Rumours of a rift between Cattrall and her co-stars have plagued Sex and the City since it first appeared on TV screens almost 20 years ago — but the cast have always fiercely denied it. With the Sex and the City franchise officially dead, though, its stars have been a little more loose-lipped in the past few days:

Kim Cattrall

Don’t expect any more Samantha bedhopping from Kim Cattrall.

Cattrall has contradicted widespread media reports that she dropped out of the film when producers would not meet her demands — namely, that she would only sign on to SATC3 if she could also get other new film and television projects she was working on greenlit.

Her only ‘demand’, she insisted, was that she didn’t want to make a third film at all — and she said she already made that clear last year.

Woke 2 a @MailOnline 💩storm! The only 'DEMAND' I ever made was that I didn't want to do a 3rd film....& that was back in 2016

— Kim Cattrall (@KimCattrall) September 29, 2017

Since that tweet, Cattrall’s been vocal on social media about her desire to move forward in her career, suggesting fans yearning for more Sex and the City should instead check out her current TV series Sensitive Skin, which “explores a woman & her world in her 50s”. She also agreed with a fan who pointed out that the second Sex and the City movie was “terrible”:

Preach.... https://t.co/yowYZMlRv0

— Kim Cattrall (@KimCattrall) September 29, 2017

Cattrall also suggested fans eager for a female film should check out the “very funny” new comedy Girl’s Trip instead.

Sarah Jessica Parker

Parker has long played down rumours of a feud between she and Cattrall, but couldn’t hide her disappointment during a New York red carpet interview last week.

“It’s over. We’re not doing it,” she told a reporter when asked about the film.

“I’m disappointed. We had this beautiful, funny, heartbreaking, joyful, very relatable script and story.

“It’s not just disappointing that we don’t get to tell that story and have that experience, but more so for that audience that has been so vocal in wanting a third movie.”

Kristin Davis

The actress who played Charlotte in SATC has been vocal about her frustration at the film’s cancellation, pouring her heart out via Instagram:

“I love to look back at the pics from our LONG history of Sex and the City. I am incredibly lucky to have gotten to play Charlotte through all of her ups and downs ... It is true that we are not going to be able to make a 3rd film. I wish that we could have made the final chapter, on our own terms, to complete the stories of our characters. It is deeply frustrating not to able to share that chapter (beautifully written by Michael Patrick King) with all of you. So we will just have our memories, but please know that all of the love and support for us through the years is felt by us and we are so grateful for all of you!” she wrote.

On Twitter, Davis has responded to fans expressing their dismay at the news, saying she “wishes it could happen” and “doesn’t know how to fix it”.

Willie Garson

Garson (at right) played Stanford in Sex and the City.

Garson played Stanford, Carrie’s gay best friend, in the series and both films. He’s also been responding to fans asking about the future of the series, saying that the script for the third film is “lovely” — but Sex and the City is dead in the water without Samantha.

Every cast member is integral, and all did amazing work, and would have in this lovely script as well. Nothing to do if one doesn't want to.

— Willie Garson (@WillieGarson) September 29, 2017

People make their own choices. Disappointed, and thankful for the run and great work by all.

— Willie Garson (@WillieGarson) September 29, 2017

Garson also appeared to back the reports that Cattrall had dropped out late in negotiations, retweeting a story about his co-star’s “demands” and writing this:

Disappointed for all crew holding on for negotiations to conclude for their jobs, and of course, for the fans. Leave it at that. #Truth

— Willie Garson (@WillieGarson) September 29, 2017

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