And Just Like That Season 3 loses yet another POC character
MaxMax’s hit series And Just Like That… has announced the departure of one of the very few POC characters left on the show.
And Just Like That… — Max’s Sex and the City spin-off — has faced a lot of criticism since it first premiered in 2022, but the show has managed to march on as they’re gearing up to premiere their third season.
However, fans have noticed that some of the show’s few minority characters have been pushed out of the already white centric series and the recent announcement of yet another POC leaving has some up in arms.
The Hollywood Reporter announced that Karen Pittman, who plays lawyer/professor Dr. Nya Wallace, will be departing from the show ahead of Season 3.
“It has been a joy to have Karen Pittman play the smart and stunning Professor Nya Wallace on the first two seasons of AND JUST LIKE THAT,” a Max spokesperson said in a statement to THR, “Due to the production realities, we are disappointed to announce that scheduling conflicts will not allow us to continue with this character as part of season 3 of AND JUST LIKE THAT… Karen and Nya will be missed, and her Max family and fans will all be cheering her on in her other endeavors.”
Pittman played the role of Wallace, a friend to the main trio of Miranda Hobbs (Cynthia Nixon), Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Charlotte York (Kristin Davis), for Season 1 and 2, but couldn’t continue her role on the show due to her continuing to star in AppleTV+’s The Morning Show and Netflix’s upcoming series Forever.
However, many And Just Like That Fans… were quick to notice that Pittman, a Black woman, is being released from the series just one month after it was announced that nonbinary actor Sara Ramírez, who played the controversial character Che Diaz, was not asked to return for Season 3.
“OK so a black woman and latine nonbinary person are out? I see you Max and what you’re all about. #DontStreamOnMax,” one fan wrote on Twitter.
Another viewer echoed the previous fan’s sentiment writing, “Not them getting rid of all the minority hires.”
And Just Like That… has been called out in the past for using their diverse actors as props to seem more “woke,” so it’s incredibly frustrating to see the show continue to fulfill the stereotype of caring about POC when it’s convenient, especially when the original series didn’t care about them at all.