Non-Binary Star Sara Ramírez to Join ‘Sex and the City’ Reboot
The continuing trend of rebooting shows and diversifying the casts – like in Saved by the Bell and Charmed – is carrying on to one of the most iconic shows of all time
Photo: Instagram/@ therealsararamirez
The continuing trend of rebooting shows and diversifying the casts – like in Saved by the Bell and Charmed – is carrying on to one of the most iconic shows of all time. It was recently announced that nonbinary star Sara Ramírez will play Che Diaz on the Sex and the City reboot, And Just Like That premiering on HBO Max. Mexican-American Ramírez will play “a non-binary, queer, stand-up comedian that hosts a podcast on which Carrie Bradshaw is regularly featured,” Deadline reported.
Che will be “a big presence with a big heart whose outrageous sense of humour and progressive, human overview of gender roles has made them and their podcast very popular.” The spin-off will follow Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) and Charlotte (Kristin Davis) (Kim Cattrall will not be returning as Samantha) as they navigate their 50s and is slated to begin production in New York this year.
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The Grey’s Anatomy star came out as non-binary in August of last year and uses she/they pronouns while her character on the SATC reboot uses they/them. She played queer icon Dr. Callie Torres for 11 seasons through 2016 with her character coming out as bisexual in 2009. Ramírez and Jessica Capshaw were featured in broadcast TV’s first primetime lesbian wedding on the series. Ramírez also played a bisexual nonbinary character on Madam Secretary. They came out as bisexual following the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida in 2016, considered the deadliest attack against the LGBTQ community in U.S. history, which left 49 people dead and 50 others wounded.
“Coming out publicly was something that I was afraid of because I was concerned that it would affect my career in a negative way,” they told People magazine. “I was afraid of the discrimination I might face, not just outside Hollywood, but inside.”
“As I continued to read and hear about the countless forms of violence perpetrated against us, including the Orlando shooting at Pulse nightclub, an organic, incremental urgency to use my platform to empower those who are part of these communities that I’m a part of came over me in a way that I’ve never felt before,” Ramirez told People.
HBO Max announced a 10-episode, half-hour series and the Tony-winning performer is the franchise’s first ever nonbinary character. This representation feels like a progressive step for a show that was criticized for it’s mostly white cast and writers team. TV Line reported that the series will introduce six new characters, and three of them will be women of color.
“Everyone at And Just Like That is beyond thrilled that a dynamically talented actor such as Sara Ramírez has joined the Sex and the City family,” executive producer Michael Patrick King said in a statement. “Sara is a one-of-a-kind talent, equally at home with comedy and drama – and we feel excited and inspired to create this new character for the show.”
