Why Kyle MacLachlan's Trey MacDougal Didn't Return In And Just Like That...

"And Just Like That..." the often joyless and turgid reboot of the flagship HBO series "Sex and the City," has brought some familiar faces from the original series back into the fray. No, there's no Samantha Jones — though her actress, Kim Cattrall, appeared in a presumably very expensive cameo at the end of season 2 — but two of Carrie Bradshaw's great loves, John "Mr. Big" Preston (Chris Noth) and Aidan Shaw (John Corbett), returned for the revival. (Big died on an exercise bike in the first-ever episode, though, so that barely counts.) Alongside Carrie, Charlotte York-Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis), and Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), a few old "Sex and the City" characters have popped up from time to time; Mario Cantone's Anthony Marentino is a prominent supporting character, and hell, even random socialite Bitsy von Muffling (Julie Halston) has made some appearances. So what about Charlotte's first husband, Trey MacDougal, played on the original series by Kyle MacLachlan?

During an episode of her podcast "Are You a Charlotte?" that aired in March 2025, Davis said that she had a great time working with MacLachlan, who was only supposed to stick around for a few episodes but ended up becoming a huge part of the show. "I loved working with Kyle MacLachlan so incredibly much," she said fondly. "We all really just fell madly in love with him, and he had to stay."

Not only that, but Davis said there was some talk of bringing MacLachlan back for "And Just Like That..." and writing a scene where, after years, Charlotte and Trey meet again in New York. "There was an idea that Trey [and] Kyle would come on in 'And Just Like That...' and then it didn't happen, and so Kyle and I had to talk about it 'cause I was kind of mad at him, I said 'Why didn't you come on? We wanted you to come on.'"

According to Davis, "I'm not saying too much, I hope Michael's not mad at me — but it had this incredible lead-up to me seeing Trey again and the thing that I loved most about this particular episode that did not happen is that Charlotte tells the friends that she has not communicated at all with Trey, which is kind of shocking in a way." (Michael, by the by, refers to Michael Patrick King, the showrunner on the revival series.)

To say things didn't end well between Trey MacDougal and Charlotte York on "Sex and the City" is a massive understatement. Fans of the show recall that Charlotte, the hopeless romantic of the main group, has a chance meeting with Trey while she's actively running away from a horrible date and is immediately smitten with the handsome, wealthy doctor. The two get married very quickly, only to discover massive intimacy issues in their marriage that derail them as quickly as the honeymoon. (In an episode where the girls go to Los Angeles and Samantha proudly purchases a fake Fendi bag, Charlotte exclaims to Carrie — after admitting that she and Trey didn't consummate their marriage on their honeymoon — "My marriage is a fake Fendi!") Even after they work on their physical compatibility, Charlotte has trouble conceiving, and their shared inability to have a child puts such a strain on their marriage that Trey and Charlotte ultimately split. Not only that, but Charlotte marries her divorce lawyer Harry Goldenblatt (Evan Handler), and in the current timeline on "And Just Like That..." the two are happily married with two children.

Still, Kristin Davis maintains that a reunion between Charlotte and Trey would be great. "She really wants to see him, and I, Kristin, also feel that way," she said candidly. "So I'm hoping that we can kind of revisit a 'maybe they run into each other just at an event or a restaurant or something like that.'"

Apparently, MacLachlan is understandably hesitant to reprise his role as Trey, and Davis said she actually pushed him on the topic, though they came to a shared understanding. "I did give him a hard time the other day, and then he explained his point of view, and I did understand it," Davis revealed. "When you have played such a wonderful part in the past that people have such a great memory of, and it was so special as a work experience, you want it to kind of stay in this glorious place, and I think he just didn't want there to be kind of a sad note to the end. So I get that."

It's funny that "Twin Peaks" star Kyle MacLachlan — who did return for the revival of that series, helmed by his frequent collaborator and good friend David Lynch — told Kristin Davis that he doesn't particularly want to come back for "And Just Like That..." Why? In January of 2024, he told Al Roker on Today that he had a really good concept for a Trey-centric spin-off.

"I know exactly what he would be doing. He'd be still living with his mom, Bunny. They'd have their own show, the 'Bunny and Trey Show,' and it would be very popular on HBO," he said before joking, "I'm trying to sell my idea."

There is, sadly, one huge problem here. Frances Sternhagen, the actress who played Trey's domineering, chainsmoking mother Bunny MacDougal, passed away in November 2023. Beyond that, though, I think I can safely speculate that MacLachlan was joking ... and I also will go on the record happily and say that Trey should not be on "And Just Like That..." at any point. Bringing Aidan back into the "Sex and the City" universe — first in the second film and now in the revival series — has only provided diminishing returns, and as funny as Trey was (and as great as MacLachlan always is), Trey sucks. Kristin Davis' desire to reconnect with her co-star makes sense, but narratively, this would just make "And Just Like That..." into an even bigger mess, if that's even possible at this point. Poor Harry Goldenblatt doesn't deserve to come face to face with his beloved wife's ex-husband anyway. Protect Harry at all costs, even if that means a distinct lack of MacLachlan on my TV each week.

"And Just Like That..." and "Sex and the City" are available to stream on HBO Max.