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Sarah Jessica Parker Says She 'Felt Responsible' for Willie Garson's Health on 'And Just Like That' Set

Sarah Jessica Parker Says She 'Felt Responsible' for Willie Garson's Health on 'And Just Like That' Set

Sarah Jessica Parker is opening up about working with her late Sex and the City co-star Willie Garson amid his private cancer battle.

In a new interview with Vulture, the 56-year-old actress discussed being the only cast member to know about his diagnosis during production of HBO Max‘s revival, And Just Like That.

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“I knew before we started shooting that Willie was sick. He asked me to keep that confidential, and I honored that,” she explained.

“It was fraught for me to know that he was sick with that particular, terrifying diagnosis. We were a vaccine-mandated show, but nonetheless, a lot of our scenes were with a lot of background players, and I had great concerns about Willie staying as healthy as he could while shooting,” Sarah Jessica continued.

“I couldn’t share that with anybody. I’d only keep track of him, and I felt responsible in some ways for his health, his well-being on the set,” the actress continued. “Anytime there was downtime, I sat with him and talked with him. He really was a raconteur, a famously gifted storyteller. We could hear the same story over and over again as if it were the first time, and he was terrifically good at documenting his life and sharing it with us.”

Sarah Jessica also recalled Willie disclosing his diagnosis to the rest of the show’s cast, which was “particularly difficult” as it coincided with them filming the funeral episode.

“That day was excruciating, to be in a fictional world of the loss of a life, but in the real world, of somebody that you knew was sick — that was his last day working with us,” she said. “He intended and wanted to complete the entire season. He had a very significant storyline, more so than ever, so it was my fervent hope that he would be able to do it all. And for Willie to have to leave, you knew that it was serious.”

She added, “If Willie could be there and do one more episode or one more scene, he would have done it. But he knew what he needed to do to take care of his son [Nathen] and of himself, and I am so glad that he did that because when he passed away, he wanted to do so in an environment and circumstance that made him feel safe and comfortable.”

The actress went on to say of her relationship with Willie , “Our friendship onscreen is similar in many ways to our friendship off, which is not typical.”

Sarah Jessica penned a touching tribute to the actor following the news of his passing. See her post here

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