Note: This story contains spoilers from “And Just Like That” Season 3, Episode 1.
Since the very first episode of “Sex and the City,” HBO’s crown jewel has reveled in cringeworthy dating misadventures. In kicking off Season 3, “And Just Like That” fully embraces that tradition all thanks to Miranda.
Miranda’s latest questionable date is with Mary (Rose O’Donnell), a woman from outside Winnipeg who is stunned by Miranda’s beauty at a queer dating event. After exchanging some flirty banter, Mary invites Miranda to her hotel. It’s only after a night of passion that Miranda learns the disturbing truth about her latest hookup: not only was Mary a virgin, but she’s a nun.
“Miranda always had such disastrous dates back in the day. So it was funny and enjoyable to be back on the disastrous dating merry-go-round again,” Cynthia Nixon told TheWrap.
For Nixon, working with her longtime friend was “fantastic.” “We’ve been trying to find a job for Rosie ever since we started the show. It never worked out before, but I’m glad this was the one that worked out,” Nixon said.
The cameo makes excellent use of O’Donnell’s comedic prowess. After trying to ghost Mary, “Outlook Good” ends with Miranda stepping up and lending Mary the kindness and understanding she wasn’t always given during her coming out journey. She reluctantly meets Mary in the middle of Times Square — literal hell for any true New Yorker — and lets her down gently. Their reunion ends with Mary, clad in a “Wicked” T-shirt, singing “For Good” to Miranda as the redhead looks uncomfortably around her.
“It wasn’t just Rosie as a nun. It wasn’t just Rosie in her ‘Wicked’ T-shirt singing because I knew there was also a huge King Kong gorilla just behind us. It was crazy and fun,” Nixon said. “Time spent with Rosie O’Donnell is always a good time. And if you can’t be actually at a Broadway show with Rosie or you can’t be backstage with Rosie, where she is a god who is worshiped, the next best thing would be to be in Times Square having her sing ‘Wicked’ to you.”
The entire confrontation is a certifiably silly one in a show full of silly moments. But there is a sincerity behind O’Donnell’s portrayal of Mary the nun that’s remarkable. After Miranda warns Mary not to leave God for her, Mary assures Miranda she would never leave God. She then says this person — her sexual orientation — has always been part of her. “Now I’ve met her, thanks to you,” Mary says.
“There’s so much heart, and I would just really put that at Rosie’s doorstep because she’s incredibly funny in this part, but she takes it so seriously. She doesn’t patronize her character,” Nixon explained. “In lesser hands, it might have been a send up of this character, but she’s so sincere and true to her. Of course, you see the ridiculousness of the character, but you also see the heart and the longing and the hopefulness of the character.”
As is the case with every failed or successful relationship in “Sex and the City” and in “And Just Like That,” this one also pushes Miranda to grow. After two seasons spent floundering in Che Diaz’s (Sara Ramirez) orbit, Miranda is seen as the queer expert to Mary.
“She’s evolved past her entry-level gay into her intermediate-level gay. She’s still making some big mistakes, but what’s important to me about that relationship, aside from the sweetness that Rosie brought to that character, is that Miranda says, ‘I’ve been where you are, and don’t do anything crazy,’” series developer, executive producer and showrunner Michael Patrick King told TheWrap. King pointed to this exchange between Miranda and Mary as “what the show’s always been about.”
“All these loves and relationships come in so people can say, ‘Thanks to you, I’ve met another part of me.’ Every relationship that’s ever been on the show is, ‘Thanks to you, I’ve met this part of me,’” King explained.
King acknowledged that Miranda has been put through the ringer since “And Just Like That” premiered. Since the spinoff series, Miranda has completely reinvented herself, divorcing her emotionally distant husband Steve, coming out as queer to her family and friends, quitting her job as a corporate lawyer and becoming an intern at Human Rights Watch.
“We took her over a pretty bumpy road for the last two years — by design, by the way — to get her to where she is now: standing up, strong, evolved, successful, doing a job that she cares about, but still being very Miranda, which is the worst dater on the show and confused and noble and trying,” King said. “But we love the fact that Miranda has come out of the dark into the light. She seems more vibrant [this season] and really sarcastic. Miranda’s back … Miranda’s always been a great character to write because she’s so smart. Now that she’s a little bit less encumbered by mistakes and challenges, she’s really vibrant. It feels human and yet heroic at the same time for us.”
King isn’t the only one who’s thrilled about Miranda’s return to her confident and whip-smart self.
“Professionally, she’s on the right path. She knows what she’s doing. She’s trying to get better at it. In terms of dating, at least she knows the kind of person she wants to date even if she hasn’t found the person,” Nixon said. The actor also sees Miranda’s rocky couple of seasons as a natural extension of her character.
“I think Miranda is someone who always succeeded, who was always focused on winning. She always wanted to win. She always wanted to be a partner at the law firm. She always wanted to be the top of the pack. She would get the A+,” Nixon said. “She succeeded at so many of the things that she tried, and then she realized she was miserable. It’s always interesting to watch someone on a learning curve learn to do things that they don’t know how to do. I think it’s particularly interesting to watch someone whose main overarching desire in life is to do things perfectly all the time and put them in situations where they have no idea how to even begin.”
“And Just Like That” releases new episodes Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on Max.
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