Michael Patrick King

Interview By: Rocco Passafuime
RoccoPassafuime@TheCinemaSource.com

As much as great actors make a great movie or TV series, there's another crucial aspect that may be the most defining factor between a fantastic work and pure crap, and that is great writing. Michael Patrick King has been one of the overlooked key factors behind HBO TV comedy's Sex And The City's incredible success as the show's writer, director, and executive producer.

Now the 53 year-old prepares to return to the fold as writer, producer, and director of the long-awaited Sex & The City movie. As the creative force behind the film, we asked King the one question fans of any successful TV series would have when they first learn of something like this coming up, why a theatrical movie'

'Well, first of all, I thought we did television really well and I thought we ended it well,' Michael replies, 'I mean, the expression of the finale felt a little like a movie. The series was always a bit cinematic. Sometimes, there were like 38 scenes in 30 minutes. We told a lot of story. So the idea of coming back again, how do you top literally what you did' You don't and you evolve into the next thing and each season, the series evolved.'

'It changed every year,' he continues, 'So the next evolution seems to be a bigger picture. Well, I got the ability to tell a bigger story. It's fun to tell a story that spanned a year and I think there's a difference between the series and the movie. It's just that the series was a lot more talky and a lot more close up talking heads and the movie has a much more visual quality and non-verbal quality there. I really think everybody did an amazing job.'

However, when asked whose idea it was to even continue the series with movie, Michael is quick to note that it certainly was not his idea.

'Actually, when the series ended, I was quite happy that the chapter was closed and I put it away,' he claims, 'And suddenly, when the movie became a reality this time, Sarah Jessica [Parker] called me and said, 'We're thinking about doing the movie again. We're going to start' What do you think'' And I said it has to be a new story. She goes, 'Yeah, I know. I agree. It has to be totally new.''

'I always knew that if there was ever another story, that the great story left untold was the big story,' King adds, 'That's all anybody ever asked me. Would Carrie and Big get married' Would they' How would it work' Would they be happy' Would it stick' So I knew that, from a technical point of view, I knew that the scaffold for the entire building was going to be the Carrie and Big wedding, if it happened, if it didn't happen.'

While most people would be rather skeptical about the necessity of a TV series continuing with a big-screen movie, King is quick to point out the direction of the story proved to be advantageous in the setting for a romantic comedy film.

'Every romantic comedy that's ever sort of been in the world right now is about a wedding, so I thought, Carrie Bradshaw is a really complicated, untraditional character, whenever a story of it being a possible wedding for her has got to be complicated, so that started,' he explains, 'Then I started thinking, where would these women be now, like when we did the series. We married Charlotte. Why' Because Charlotte would get married, no matter what.'

'She was in the right moment in her life, so I just tried to follow what I saw in life, so I thought, Charlotte adopted a baby, so now she has Lily,' Michael continues, 'Miranda, working, in her exile in Brooklyn. You know, some twentysomething girls saw the movie and asked me, why is she complaining about Brooklyn' And I was like, because that's your New York. That's your reality. Her, she came when Brooklyn was like, 'I'm in Brooklyn! It's an exile.' I always loved the idea that Carrie and Big start incredibly happy in an undefined relationship. It's undefined, by society's standards.'

Michael also had little concern about the potential problem of getting non-fans familiar with the existing story in the new series. He claims he managed to overcome this hurdle with his opening sequence, which enabled him to creatively incorporate some of the best moments of the TV series.

'Here's the interesting thing about the opening sequence,' King says, 'It's not in my first cut of the movie. Everything that was fullscreen was and when I saw it, I thought, not fancy enough. It's not fancy enough. I don't feel enough references to what was there and I also was concerned that people who had never seen the series would be missing impact, the impact of story points. And you know, where it came to me, was that Lily didn't get introduced in the movie and that was very important, she's Charlotte's adopted daughter. So I thought, I had to get her in.'

'So when it came to the idea that Carrie's books open up, that her past is a book and it comes to life, I just thought, OK, what are the significant moments that people have repeated the most from these characters,' he adds, 'The first one was Charlotte saying, 'I've been dating since I was 15, I'm exhausted!' which I wrote. And another one which sprung to mind was Samantha at the moment of 'funky spunk'. So I'm going to put 'funky spunk' in it and get a laugh right up front anyway. And it was just a matter of trolling through and finding archetypical moments. In the Carrie moment, it's very subtle, but in one of those computer shots, there's smoke, because she smoked at that point in the series. If you know the series, there's a lot of great little powerpoints for you, but it was an interesting journey to try to do six years in three and some minutes.'

Another thing King made considerably more epic for the movie was the show's memorable piano-laden theme.

'We did use the theme song,' Michael says, 'Well, here's the interesting thing. We used the theme song originally and then, I thought, we're different. It's different. And then, we took it off and when we screened it, people were like, 'Where's the theme song'' And I'm like, 'OK, theme song on steroids.''

'And just like we had to make the series current and the girls evolve to a certain place, I did not want to do a song that was not current, so we got Salaam Remi,' he adds, 'The Fergie version is fun and that's current. It's as current as the clothes and everything and we thought, we've always been sort of have been held up as being 'current' or 'the edge', so why were we going to do the song as it was four years ago. It didn't seem very current.'

Despite much-reported, enormous tabloid coverage at every turn by the paparazzi during the filming of the movie, Michael claims that there was little fuss during the on-location shoot in the busy streets of Manhattan in New York City.

'It was never hard, because the crowds were incredibly respectful,' he recalls, 'What it was was unruly at first. There were days when I would see Carrie and Big and I'm looking at the dailies and then I see, 'Who's that with a camera phone' How did they get it'' We were caught unawares. We started once. The first scene that we filmed is the first scene you see Carrie and Big on the street. It was very stealth. We went on the street, we were on the Upper East Side, it was pretty, we had a barricade. No one came, twenty people. People were at the museum at the Met and didn't even come over. The next day, the paper printed our location, 300 people. Me and Charlotte and Big and it was just I couldn't, 'Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me.''

'But, then, it got to assistant Betty Ann Fishman, who is our first AD, was on a ladder, with a bullhorn, when we filmed those scenes in front of a library in the wedding gown. She would say, 'Everybody take your pictures now.'' King continues, 'You'd hear cameras flashing, 400 people. 'Everybody stop. No talking.' I'd say, 'Action,' hear the lines, I'd say, 'Cut,' applause. It was like a theater movie. So it was really great. And the other thing about the paparazzi that was really bizarre is that I would film a scene and then I would go home and watch the entertainment news shows and I'd see the scene I filmed on television before I had seen the dailies. Because they're actually running behind the camera and all my reaction was is, 'Well, that will work. That's going to work. Mmm hmm.''

A particular aspect of the film King says he was careful not only to keep to a minimum the amount of dialogue-heavy scenes for the movie, but not to recycle and rehash material already done in the TV series.

'You don't want to play your hand,' he explains, 'If you notice the coffee shop scene is very late into the movie, before they actually sit in that classic coffee shop and have a scene. That scene is a completely different evolution because when I'd sit down to write that, I'm the guy who wrote 'Tuckus Lingus' I know how to write a funny 'funky spunk' scene if I wanted to. I wrote the 'Up The Butt Players'. I wrote a lot of great, inappropriate, coffee shop chatter. And I got the four girls and they sat down and they're talking about sex and I was like, 'No, that's over. We're done with that.' We did that. It's over. How would I talk about it now''

'We put Lily at the table because I thought, well that's interesting, to have a conversation with a three-year old, who's repeating things,' Michael adds, 'But literally, I got there and I thought, I'm done with that and they're done with that. It's the difference between 34 and being 40. It's a different attitude. It's not sexless. It's sexy but it's not about sex. And so, you have to trust that when you do that scene, that maybe you're in the right zone and you're like maybe where the audience is. Because guess what, you can rent or put the girls in talking about tuckus lingus, so why would I write that again' It's on the DVD. You just go, 'You want to see them at 34, just put it in the DVD player when they're 34.'

One particularly risqu' Sex & The City movie scene we were quick to inquire about with Michael was one involving a new way to enjoy sushi from Samantha.

'Why not'' King remarks, 'I mean, you got Kim Cattrall. Who's going to be cuter and sexier at putting sushi on her body than Kim Cattrall. But for me, sushi shows that Samantha's kind of desperate attempt to reach down in her and create that sex life that she sort of used to have with the man she loves. And because of the way her dice is being rolled, that doesn't happen.'

'I think sushi on a naked body is so sexy body until their late, then it's just cold fish on your skin,' he continues, 'It's classic for what we used to do on the series. One minute, it's sexy, it doesn't go right and it becomes a big cream pie. The whole sushi scene, just to see that sushi falling and what about, that's Patricia Field, she's wearing rhinestone fish skeleton shoes. Come on!'

One such unique change Michael brings to the movie is the casting of Oscar award-winning actress Jennifer Hudson as new character, Louise, Carrie's personal assistant.

'I can talk about Jennifer Hudson all day long,' King enthuses, 'The interesting thing about the movie to me was you have four jewels and you still have the need to bring in another' That's crazy. Especially from a movie that's busting at the seams with story. The reason is I wanted to do the theme of twentysomething women becoming fortysomething women and how love looks differently to a twenty year old than it does to a forty year old whose had her heart broken. So, I also thought, if I'm bringing in a twentysomething girl, who's it going to be''

He also notes that Louise and many of the other unique things King brings to the movie came from various feedback from the show's devoted female following, in the four years since it ended its run on HBO.

'Specifically, women come up to me and I've been very blessed over the years,' he says, 'Primarily, it's two things that stick in my mind,' One woman said to me, 'Is it OK for me to turn 50 and be alone'' And I was like, 'Huh, nice. Thank you.' And then, women of color have always said to me, 'I love it, where are the sisters'' And I was like, 'Yeah, where are the sisters'' And I thought, well, here they are. It's a twentysomething character. It's a silhouette and it's a person I never seen in the series. I want to bring in somebody for the Midwest, so I wrote Louise as African American. I did not write the part with Jennifer Hudson in mind.'

'And then, I had Louise and then it was like who could play this part'' Michael continues, 'And it was like, it better be another star who could sit across from Sarah Jessica Parker and be special. So, then, I have Jennifer Hudson the script and I asked her and she said yes. But it was great and what she brings to the movie for me is strength and heart and no-nonsense and hope and she's the anchor for Carrie. And the other thing that's interesting is when you've talked about a man with your friends for ten years, there's really nothing else to say. But when a new person comes into your world and asks you a question, maybe someone you're not emotionally attached to, you're able to reveal more about yourself, so, for me, she gave Carrie strength and she gave Louise a little bit of New York.'

One particular unique change Michael was very quick to dispel were various rumors in the press that one of the characters was to die in the movie.

'Here's the interesting thing,' he claims, 'There has been in pop culture desire about death in this movie. I mean, I actually had someone who's very big up in the fashion business, if you think about it, you'll know who I mean, and one of her pitches to me was, 'Mr. Big should die.' And I think people were looking, they wanted it to be more than cocktails and jokes. People thought if you're coming back, come back with a big story, but somehow, this rumor started that somebody died in the movie. And as you know, there's a great tragedy in the movie, but it's not a literal death. It's funny because in a very long first draft, Steve's mother, played by Ann Mirren in the series, did die.'

'And so when Cynthia [Nixon] asked the question, 'Is there a death in the movie'', she just sort of went into this Cheshire Cat smile because we didn't know what was actually going to be filmed, so I think that maybe put the house on fire,' King adds, 'And then, there's 'The Polls' and somebody told me, 'Charlotte dies in childbirth' and I'm like, 'Happy summer! I'm happy for you. What is she a pioneer'! She's biting on a strap and something happens'! Charlotte dies in childbirth. That's an unexpected twist.' I want the movie to mirror back lives as we know them. I didn't want it to be, why don't martians land on the roof of Carrie's apartment as long as we're going to go crazy. I think it's a fun rumor, but I think if people are sitting there waiting for somebody to die, it's a distraction. So, yeah, no one dies, but nothing else.'

One particularly unique aspect of the movie King says he loves is the film's star-studded soundtrack.

'The music is great,' Michael exclaims, 'Jennifer Hudson has an original song called 'All Dressed In Love,' which was written by Cee-Lo and Jack Splash and it's amazing. There's a song in the middle called 'Click, Click, Flash' by Ciara and it's nice.' And then, Fergie created with Salaam Remi and Will.I.Am 'Labels And Love' and they took the song from the first line in the movie, 'Women come to New York looking for labels and love.' And they said, 'Alright, that's the summer movie shop and singing song.''

Michael also shared with us how he got the Black Eyed Peas member on board for the film's soundtrack.

'Actually, we wanted Fergie,' King says, 'The music company said she was really, really, really busy and then she said, very bargain-y, 'Let me see the movie.' So we had a private bootleg screening with Fergie and she said to me she would do it. And then, she said to me afterwards, 'That movie is really vulnerable and Sarah Jessica Parker, she took it there.' So, then, Fergie went into the studio and recorded it almost immediately.'

When the movie was finally greenlighted last year, one thing King said he was absolutely insistent on was that it was filmed in time for a summer release.

'It's a summer movie,' Michael asserts, 'It's summer for the girls in the movie. Sex & The City was a summer series. We always premiered in the beginning of June. It was always a summer movie. We always knew that we're targeting this summer, which really sped everything up. I finished the script literally a year ago.'

'This is a very accelerated film process,' he continues, 'I mean, from pre-production to post-production to filming, we only could have done it because we worked together for so long. So literally, I was like, action, cut, the movie was done,' he continues, 'These girls were ready to go, showponies, in shape, beautiful. So I always wanted it to be a summer movie, because it is.'

Despite skepticism from entertainment insiders that the very female-driven and R-rated Sex And The City movie may not attract a male audience, Michael is fairly optimistic that men will come out to see it.

'I always thought, oh, I see what's going to happen,' he says, 'Indiana Jones is for the guys and Sex & The City is for the girls. You know, with Sex & The City, I think a lot of guys are going to see it because I think if you're in a relationship with a woman and you take her to this movie, she'll feel very happy'and open and that will feel things.'

King says he has always been confident that the Sex & The City TV series and movie can be embraced just as much by men as by women. He says this is due to the equal level of depth he brings to the show's male characters as well as the female ones.

'I think that guys get from the series is they're not the fault and that's what they've always gotten,' he believes, 'And I always thought that the men are the great unsung heroes of the series and I love my man characters. People always ask me about how does a guy write the girls and I always think to them, girls write Mr. Big, too. In the series, the girls wrote Mr. Big, whenever I'm asked that question.'

'Both men and women have a challenging time with relationships,' Michael adds, 'Women just tend to talk about them more. Some guy critic said to me, 'I'm sitting there when they're talking about this relationship and said, well, how do I relate to this. I don't relate to this.' And I said, 'Well, everytime they're having their coffee and drinks and talking about relationships, imagine you're playing a basketball game with your buddies.' It's the same dynamic, just the girls talk.'

In the four years since the last Sex & The City episode aired on TV, Michael says he is still amazed by the show's resilience and its impact on pop culture.

'I have actually heard a lot of stuff. I mean, I have heard Carrie said, 'Djhudge,' like season one,' he says, 'It's a throwaway, djhudge. It's funny to hear people say 'the guy on paper', but Candace Bushnell started that all. The original, slim, icy-smart, sharp, archetypical writer who said 'Mr. Big.''

'Once you start typing people by things, it's just a carnival as a writer,' King continues, 'It's like 'Mr. Uncircumsized' or 'The Shar-Pei'. Once it starts, it's a blast, so I heard a lot of lexicons come back and I've seen a lot of 'Cosmoworld' happen.'