TV & Movies

15 Sex And The City Celebrity Guest Stars You Probably Forgot About

Before starring in hit projects like Grey’s Anatomy and A Star Is Born, these actors had run-ins with Carrie Bradshaw’s crew.

by Kenya Foy and Jack Irvin
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There are a slew of celebrities who guest-starred on 'Sex and the City,' from Bradley Cooper to Amy ...

While Sarah Jessica Parker was the star of HBO’s Sex and the City, her character’s eye-catching wardrobe certainly came in close second. But the show was also a stepping stone for a slew of famous actors, who made guest appearances during its six-season run, from musicians like Jon Bon Jovi and Alanis Morissette, to actors Vince Vaughn and Justin Theroux (twice!). Even Hugh Hefner made a cameo.

With Sex and the City currently streaming on Netflix — and the third season of its spinoff series, And Just Like That… on the horizon — it’s time to revisit some of the guest stars, whose cameos would feel surreal today.

Below, 15 other famous folks you may not remember from the show.

Bradley Cooper

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After Carrie’s “Single and Fabulous” New York magazine photoshoot goes awry, she stays out extra late at a club in her melancholia, where she encounters Jake (Bradley Cooper), who kindly lights her cigarette. After passionately kissing in his Porsche, Jake stops to buy more smokes and encounters Carrie’s issue of New York. He then taunts her with it, prompting her to walk home alone.

Chandra Wilson

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Grey’s Anatomy star Chandra Wilson graced SATC for Season 5’s 2002 premiere. In one of the episode’s most memorable scenes, Wilson plays a police officer who tells Samantha she can’t hang posters of her ex, Richard, on public property. “This man said he loved me, and I caught him eating another woman’s p*ssy,” Samantha responds. Wilson’s character allows her to carry on.

Kat Dennings

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Long before starring on 2 Broke Girls and Dollface, a 13-year-old Kat Dennings appeared on the Season 3 episode “Hot Child in the City.” She plays a stuck-up rich kid who’s obsessed with Carrie’s column. When she asks Samantha to handle publicity for her bat mitzvah, Samantha wants to turn down the gig but accepts when she realizes the party has a million-dollar budget.

Geri Halliwell

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Samantha’s hip-hugging jeans weren’t the only thing spicing up Season 6, as Ginger Spice herself, Geri Halliwell, made an appearance on the episode “Boy, Interrupted.” While trying to find relief from New York summer heat, Samantha runs into her friend Phoebe, who tells her she got misted with Evian water while sipping cocktails at Soho House — prompting Samantha to try to sneak in.

Blair Underwood

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Blair Underwood appeared on four episodes of SATC’s sixth and final season, playing Dr. Robert Leeds, who dates Miranda during an off-period in her relationship with Steve. “I wanted to be a full-fledged, well-rounded character,” he told Vulture about the role.

Bobby Cannavale

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Before Will & Grace and Homecoming, Bobby Cannavale appeared in Season 3 of SATC as Adam Ball, one of Samantha’s sexual partners, whose bodily fluids upset her taste buds. Taking matters into her own hands, she tries to fix the problem by feeding him healthy food before ultimately realizing that they’re just not a good match.

Amy Sedaris

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After starring on Strangers With Candy, Amy Sedaris appeared on four episodes of Sex and the City in Seasons 5 and 6. She played Courtney Masterson, one of two publicists for Carrie’s book. The other rep was played by fellow comedian Molly Shannon, who again starred with Sedaris and Parker on HBO’s Divorce.

Elizabeth Banks

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In the Season 3 episode “Politically Erect,” Charlotte flirts with a guest at a political fundraiser until finding out that he’s married — to Elizabeth Banks’ character, no less. Banks’ cameo is a blink-and-you-miss it moment.

Jennifer Coolidge

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Jennifer Coolidge’s SATC character is iconic. On Season 6, the White Lotus actor played Carrie’s friend who throws a purse party after going through a traumatic breakup.

Lucy Liu

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Lucy Liu is one of the few actors to play herself on the show. She appears on the Season 4 episode “Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda” as a potential new client for Samantha’s PR business. However, Samantha is quickly dropped after using Liu’s name to skip the years-long queue to buy an Hermes Birkin bag.

Will Arnett

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Will Arnett appears on Season 2 as Jack, a man Miranda meets at a downtown bookstore and briefly dates. He only likes to have sex in public places, which puzzles both Miranda and her friends, but when she finds out why he’s into this, she swiftly bolts. (For context, he’s in the episode where Big is moving to Paris.)

Heidi Klum

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In Season 4, when Carrie embarrassingly falls down during her first Fashion Week show, she’s pushed aside by none other than Heidi Klum, who overtakes the runway like a pro. Ultimately, Carrie is able to stand back up and complete the walk, culminating in a triumphant high five with Klum.

Alan Cumming

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Years before he was dressing himself fabulously on The Traitors, Alan Cumming was dressing Carrie. Before the Klum runway show, he plays the Dolce & Gabbana stylist responsible for Carrie’s jeweled underwear, which she later falls in.

Sarah Michelle Gellar

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Sarah Michelle Gellar — aka the other famous three-named Sarah — appears on a Season 3 episode as the junior film executive who wants to adapt Carrie’s weekly dating columns into a movie. And who does she pitch to star in said movie? None other than Matthew McConaughey.

Matthew McConaughey

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McConaughey is another one of the actors to play themselves on Sex and the City. In the movie of Carrie’s columns, which does not come to fruition, he would’ve played none other than Mr. Big. Can you imagine?

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