I don't care what you think about the series or about the first movie, but I think no matter what your thoughts are, we can all agree that the last thing we need is another Sex and the City movie. And guess what I think we're about to get: another Sex and the City movie.
WHYYYYYYY.
Here's what we know so far: after teasing her followers on Twitter earlier this week ("@KristenDavis Me too you! Heard the news? x"), Sarah Jessica Parker has fanned flames that there will be another cinematic instalment after posting a photo of herself on Carrie Bradshaw's brownstone steps along with the caption, "It was take your @sjpcollection shoes to work day #longdayforcarrie."
Oh boy. Everybody, go to bed. You're tired. You're thinking irrationally. Why, after we've finally — finally — been able to SORT OF forget the sexism and racism of Sex and the City 2 (read: we've repressed the memories, knowing we will never un-see the Fab Four make fun of a Muslim woman raising her Burka to eat a French fry), is this a thing we're supposed to be excited about? Why are we going to pretend that by the time this franchise came to a close ("a close"), it was doing justice to the spirit of the series? Especially since it wasn't?
Here's the thing about Sex and the City the actual show: it was important. You may not like it, you may not subscribe to its mandate, but it was a game-changer in terms of TV. To see four single women promote sex postivity in such an overt way was huge. Was it problematic? Like, beyond. The series is/was white with a capital "W," the overarching message was about finding "the one" (we're talking the show, not the movies), and the whole thing centered around well-established, financially secure women who could date freely because they had the privilege of not having to work, like, two jobs just to afford the shittiest apartment in the world. But still: in terms of celebrating women as independent, sexual beings, it did an okay job.
And then came the first movie, which was . . . fine. It was not bad. I'm thinking about Charlotte yelling at Big and how in that moment, we were all Ms. York. (And I'm forgetting when Samantha shamed Miranda for not having sex with her husband.) Then came the second movie and "Erin Go-Bra-less" (what the hell?) and EVERYTHING WE SAW IN TERMS OF INSANE AMOUNTS OF RACISM. I mean, at one point they make fun of Miranda for trying to learn the language and customs of the country they're visiting before they took us on 259258258 scenes that perpetuate Islamaphobia. (Never forget Samantha hooking up with that dude in front of a bunch of couples who were rightfully freaking out because two middle-aged humans were about to bang in a restaurant — like, sorry, but regardless of religious conviction, any person with eyes would've thought, "WHAT THE FUCK." And that was just one scene.) Did any of us believe what we were seeing? I hope not. I hope we were all really, really upset and horrified because it was all very upsetting and horrifying.
So why are we supposed to get psyched for a third instalment? Especially since all four actors are smart, talented women who really don't need to go back (to Titanic)? Of course, we're all jumping the gun. For all I or you or anybody knows, we're about to get a "Where Are They Now?" webseries that's adorable and tries to fix what the movies broke, or at least returns to convictions of the series. Or something. Maybe it's a photo shoot. Maybe a TV movie. But either way: if Sex and the City is going to come back, it can't — and neither can we — pretend what we saw in the last movie didn't happen. Everybody here is smart — and mainly too smart to overlook convenient racism and old, tired comedy troupes. All of us are better than that. At least I hope so.
Frankly, we don't have an excuse not to be. Just because something is popular doesn't mean it's without problems. And since creators are in a position to change those problems (and we're in a position to ask for it) there should be no reason to insist that something evolve past what it's become. Because at this point, the very least we can ask is that Sex and the City 4 (or whatever) isn't freakishly racist.
