And Just Like That EPs Admit To Hesitating Over Carrie And Aidan's Big Decision: 'Are We Making A Mistake?'
Warning: This post contains spoilers for Thursday's And Just Like That.
And just like that... Carrie and Aidan are no more. (Again.)
In Thursday's episode of And Just Like That..., Carrie began to bristle over the jealousy she saw Aidan directing towards her new writing buddy Duncan. (Aidan even kicked her out of bed when she smelled like smoke. A Big flashback, perhaps?) Carrie later confronted Aidan, and he admitted that he still has trust issues stemming from her affair with Big back on Sex and the City. "How is it possible that I haven't earned your trust by now?" Carrie wondered, adding that "I was one hundred percent in." Emphasis on "was." The two agreed to end things, sharing a sad hug before Carrie took comfort in a round of drinks with her gal pals.
The decision for Carrie and Aidan to break up was made "pretty early on" in the And Just Like That writers' room this season, executive producer Elisa Zuritsky tells TVLine, adding that "it wasn't a fiery debate in the room. I think it really came down to the way the previous season ended, with Aidan's family proving to be such an obstacle." The writers "really did want to play it out in the real world and think of [Carrie and Aidan] as real people, and take them out of the fantasy Disney prince and princess happy ending that we were kind of playing with in Season 2. It did feel like too much to ask of those two people, especially with their baggage."
That baggage includes some very old bags still left over from Carrie's dalliance with Big a quarter-century ago on Sex and the City, fellow EP Julie Rottenberg — who wrote with Zuritsky on SATC as well — notes. Carrie and Aidan "are, in many ways, maybe older, wiser people" now, but "what comes out in that last scene, in a way, it's like everything that's always right under the surface. It all boils down to that." (Remember, Aidan wouldn't set foot in Carrie's old apartment last season because of the memories it stirred up.) In the end, "I think we all knew their problems were systemic enough that they would not survive," Rottenberg says.
That's not to say it was an easy decision to make, though. "When it came closer and closer to shooting that scene, the breakup scene," Rottenberg remembers, "and I think part of it is Sarah Jessica [Parker] and John Corbett have such an incredible bond and chemistry and relationship as both actors and as the characters, I did start to worry. I got a little panicky. 'Should we not be doing this? Should we not be breaking them up?'... I remember feeling a little panicked as it got closer, like: 'Are we making a mistake?' I almost felt like I was in the breakup!"
But the writers made sure to plant seeds throughout the season leading to the split, Zuritsky points out: "Knowing that at some point towards the end of the season we were going to break them up, we had to spend most of our time really getting into: What are the stepping stones to earn this mutual giving up? Really, no one breaks up with the other. They kind of reach a moment where they have to admit that they both feel exhausted by the trying of it. It took a lot of time to build the fracture that became the break."
So does that break mean there's now an opening for Duncan in Carrie's heart? Is she even ready to consider a new romance at this point? Rottenberg will only say that it's "an excellent question" — and we've got three more episodes left in Season 3 to find out the answer.
Tell us in the comments, And Just Like That fans: How do you feel about Carrie and Aidan's breakup? And do you think Duncan is a better match for her?