Michael Patrick King stands by the 'Toilet Scene' and Carrie's solo ending on And Just Like That finale

And Just Like That, a spin-off of the beloved show Sex and the City, is now making headlines for its toilet scene in the series finale. The fans had high expectations for the show to end on a good note, but the showrunner, Michael Patrick, has a different game plan altogether. 

The controversy for And Just Like That began when fans were disgusted over a particular scene where the camera focuses heavily on the mess in the lavatory seat. What began as a Thanksgiving dinner party ended in a full-blown plumbing emergency, and fans found the scene to be unnecessary, leading to backlash on social media.

Social media reactions were harsh, with fans labeling it 'insulting,' 'lazy writing,' and saying it left them feeling nauseated.

Showrunner Michael Patrick defended the scene and shared his side with Variety as to why the scene was intentional and meaningful. He said, 

“We cannot take ourselves too seriously. For the gorgeousness of Carrie’s pink, sparkly top and tulle skirt — that’s the high — the low is a toilet filled up with s** t.’’  “Because guess what? Being single, there’s a lot of s** t, and relationships are a lot of s** t. It’s the comedy, with the drama, with the romance, with the fairy tale. I guess it’s a response to the fairy tale.” 

The toilet-overflow gag, which was one of the most divisive moments in the finale, turned out to be a purposeful metaphor for the showrunner depicting the realities of single life and relationships all in a fun way. 

Michael Patrick King on Carrie's solo ending

While fans were disgusted by the toilet scene during the Thanksgiving party, they were just as baffled by how the show chose to end. Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) was shown dancing in her apartment, enjoying her independence with no commitments or relationships, now living happily on her own. 

The showrunner explained that making Carrie single at the end was a '’call and response'’ to the criticism of Sex and the City’s finale.

The series saw everyone with Carrie, Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte (Kristin Davis), and Samantha (Kim Cattrall) all ending up happily with their partners in Sex and the City. He wanted the prequel to show the exact opposite.

“It is something that I’ve always thought about. Because, as much as I made sure in the ‘Sex and the City’ finale that they weren’t all married — because the anarchy of “Sex and the City” was that, at that time, that being 34, with someone, but unmarried, was unacceptable … So Samantha was not married. That was my loophole,” he said. 

He shared his thoughts on the dancing scene, noting how it shows Carrie at peace with being single. He told Variety, 

‘’It’s the real, real, this-is-now Carrie. Many, many years later, having gone through deaths, heartbreaks, new romances, saying, ‘I’m grown-up enough to face this, because I’ve created a life that’s so magnificent for myself.’’

He added,

“She’s on her own. And that sentence is… mostly for someone who feels bad because they don’t have someone. That’s really what it is. It’s to say: Look at her, how fabulous she is, and she’s exactly where you are. That’s what it’s for.”

The showrunner explained that the finale was designed to portray Carrie as a self-reliant woman. This is echoed in her novel about a woman in the 1800s, which she ends with the line: ‘’The woman realized she was not alone — she was on her own.”