During the six-season run of “Sex and the City” as an HBO show, I was a faithful viewer of the program. Actually, let’s start over — for the first four seasons, I adored the show as a guilty pleasure, and for the final two seasons, I tolerated the demise of what was enjoyable and fun about the four main characters. Then the executive producers had the bright idea to make not just one but two films that turned the entire franchise into a caricature of itself. Like many other people, these movies put a very bad taste in my mouth; as a result, I can no longer go back and enjoy old episodes of the show. So it does not come as pleasing news to learn that the CW is proceeding with “The Carrie Diaries,” which will serve as a prequel revolving around the high-school-aged exploits of Carrie before she hooks up with Miranda, Charlotte, and Samantha. What’s more, they’ve cast AnnaSophia Robb (Soul Surfer, Race to Witch Mountain) in the role of Carrie, which could prove to be an early career killer for Robb if the show fails miserably. Will anyone actually tune in to watch it?
AnnaSophia Robb has some big — not to mention fashionable — shoes to fill.
The actress, 18, is set to play a high school version of the Manolo Blahnik-obsessing, love-chasing Carrie Bradshaw, a role originated by Sarah Jessica Parker in HBO’s Sex and the City, The Hollywood Reporter confirms.
The CW has ordered a pilot episode of The Carrie Diaries, which will chronicle Bradshaw’s teen days in ’80s Manhattan, long before penning her sex column.
Also getting carried away with Robb, who portrayed real-life survivor Bethany Hamilton in last year’s Soul Surfer: The Killing’s Katie Findlay and Scott Pilgrim Vs. the Worlds Ellen Wong, who will play two of Bradshaw’s friends – presumably before she meets BFFs Charlotte (Kristin Davis), Samantha (Kim Cattrall) and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon).
The series, which will also star Running Wilde’s Stefania Owen as Carrie’s little sister Dorritt, is based on author Candace Bushnell’s Sex and the City prequel of the same name.
[From People]
Last July, Blake Lively was being considered for the role of Samantha Jones while producers were still sort of envisioning the prequel as a movie with Elizabeth Olsen as Carrie (like she’d really go there). Kaiser and I were discussing how Blake’s fame hustling through relationships with Leo DiCaprio and Ryan Reynolds has actually increased her profile so much that, ironically, she’d probably now consider an SATC prequel series on the CW as too “downmarket” for her worth as an actress. Then again, Blake’s still appearing in “Gossip Girl” these days, right?
As to the decision to cast Robb, who to date has mostly appeared in wholesome movies, in the role of 1980s Carrie, meh. I just hope she enjoys wearing Guess jeans and Jessica McClintock dresses.
Photos courtesy of WENN
She looks like she could pass as a young Carrie. I’ll probably watch at least one episode.
Love her. She’s so pretty.
I don’t think she’s horse-faced enough to play Carrie.
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Seriously. How are viewers going to believe that a non-beauty like adult Carrie (SJP) used to be a pretty young teen like AnnaSophia? The suspension of disbelief is enormous.
Agree with your assassment of the show. Around season 5 it became like pantomime. Carrie’s exaggerated faces and near constant squealing (who the fuck squeals?), and all the awkwardly inserted puns, the commercialism and just…cartoonishness of it all.
Which is a shame, because the first few seasons were smart, dry, and ACTUALLY edgy.
And that second movie was the most vapid, graceless thing I have ever seen. I saw it on a plane, and I think my entire ticket should be refunded. And it was a TRANS-ATLANTIC ticket.
What a dumb idea. I agree that what was initially a charming show has been tainted and cheapened beyond belief. (Funny how the “Friends” cast seems to get that and are reluctant to turn it into a movie, based on whatever interview with Jen A that was posted here recently. Good call, leave the show to the TV archives.)
If CW really wants to do a show about a high school girl in the 80s, is it really to their advantage to tie it to SATC? It bugs.
She’s a really pretty girl, but the whole concept seems kind of…inappropriate to me. SATC was intended for adults. I don’t think I’d like the idea of my child(ren) watching a prequel show, even if it is targeted at teens. That being said, I doubt this will even be an issue. I think the show will crash and burn just as fast as their re-make of Melrose Place.
Jessica McClintock dresses!!! Wow, I had forgotten entirely about that must have 80s fashion.
Ive like Robb ever since Because of Winn Dixie so I hope this does well for her.
This girl is so pretty.. but I am still not sold on this show. The ladies of SATC did not meet until they were in their mid-to-late 20s.. is this show going to be just about Carrie?
Love her and love her last dress!!
Could they please stop trying to make the SATC thing still happen. The show is over. Move on.
nope. i will not watch it, just like i didn’t watch the last one. they should just let that thing die.
I live in the same area as this girl, and I have met her. She came across as a little snotty, but she wasn’t too bad.
I have met her a couple of times in New York and she is a snot. First, I saw her when she was a pre teen and she was a snot and then I have seen her 5 years ago and she was snotier as she got older. I will not support her in any of her crappy movies.
i’ve read the first two books in the Carrie Diaries. they are cute, quick reads. I will probably check it out, but honestly, I don’t care about shows with kids in high school anymore.
**SEMI SPOILER**Carrie meets Sam almost as soon as she moves to NYC. Miranda shortly after and then Charlotte like the following year…according to these books.
Personally, I liked the 1st satc movie and the second one was kind of silly and unrealistic. I love the satc series and I still watch the whole show at least once a month. I read the carrie diaries and while it was cute, carrie’s upbringing was told differently than what was on the series. I will probably watch one epi just to see what it’s like but I doubt it will be as entertaining.
She looks cute! And I like her style. For a young girl, she looks demure, and quite certainly would work a wide-eyed Carrie in her early days.
If it is well made à la Vampire Diaries, and the story lines are well written, I say why not.
There is a reason why at my age (cough, thirties, cough), I still LOVE watching the Vampire Diaries: It is fast paced, well written, and they dare to show the main characters as very flawed, self centered, yet quite likable! So, hope the Carrie Diaries will do the same. Hope they would show us logically how Carrie got to be Carrie, and get hooked on a man like Big. There must be a good story in there for her always going back to a selfish man like Mr. Big.
Sorry, but I think The Vampire Diaries is mediocre. Some of the actors in the show are talented, but the writing is bad and the behavior of the characters is all over the place.
I’m also in my thirties and I cannot believe vampires who have existed for 150+ years would be interested in high school girls (Twilight, anyone?). Even worse, many of the vampires behave like they have the emotional maturity of teenagers themselves, even though they have “lived” so long.
Anne Rice was the first writer to give vampires human-like emotions, consciences, and existential conflict. She did it far better than all those authors who have copied her.
Eh, Minty, Anne Rice was exciting when first she started writing about Vampires, but then she became really a downer.
All her vampires are oppressed, depressed and all over self-brutalizing after a good session of degeneration.
But VD is fun. At times spooky. Am a Paul/Stefan fan. That guy can act the bazonkas out of anyone with just one look. The other one… I shall not name for he has rabid fans, is just too… You know that dude that overacts with his eyebrows on Days of Our Lives? Same thing.
But back to the Carrie Diaries, I will give it a chance. Ms. Robb looks like she can actually pull it off.
Well, Maguita, I like Anne Rice’s first 3 vampire novels. The rest were blah. I appreciate that she did not overly-romanticize their “lifestyle”. Because many of them had a conscience, they were unhappily conflicted about being killers, so her writing was appropriately dark.
Vampire Diaries has atmosphere, I’ll give you that. Some of the actors elevate the writing with their good acting, something I couldn’t say about those wretched Twilight movies. But the target demographic is the same for both vampire franchises.
If you want to see a vampire film that pulls no punches and shows them as true merciless predators, you should watch 30 Days Of Night.
I loved the show, loved the first movie, didn’t like the second one so much, but I’ll watch anything from SACT, at least give it a try with an open mind.
That this is a CW show says it all.
With the exception of Nikita, which I usually like, most CW programming is geared toward a teen audience. I find that characters in the new 90210, Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries, The Secret Circle, etc, don’t behave much differently from Twilight’s Bella and Edward. Kids pretending to be adults, making the same foolish mistakes over and over. And they all get involved in the silliest love triangles. The stories are supposed to be serious, but they feel like unintentional comedies with a soap opera twist.
You know those SATC producers are trying to squeeze as much money as they can out of a tired old franchise. That’s too bad, because it’s always better to end on a high note. Like the crappy movies, this new series should not have been made.
I’m surprised she’s taking the role. The reason most of her roles are really wholesome is because she comes from a Christian background and I thought she was one that would only take roles that weren’t seen as showing less than moral behavior as being acceptable. To be honest she’d be my pick for Tebow over Princess Taylor