And Just Like That Fans Want Justice For Steve, And It's Apparently Coming
Despite how it seems, the writers don't actually hate Steve.
HBO Max’s And Just Like That has been shaking up the lives of Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), and Charlotte York (Kristen Davis), but there is one character fans are wanting justice for: Miranda’s husband Steve Brady (David Eigenberg). By now, fans have watched Miranda explore a romantic relationship with Carrie’s boss Che Diaz (Sara Ramirez), while Steve is left in the dark about the affair and Miranda’s feelings about their marriage. So, this leaves fans coming to protect good-guy Steve. Despite Steve’s world also getting turned upside down, the And Just Like That writers defended Steve’s sad storyline after fans demanded justice for him online.
In a Jan. 13 interview with Vanity Fair, executive producers Julie Rottenberg and Elisa Zuritsky *politely* disagreed with the criticism over Steve’s bummer storyline, such as his hearing loss. “Everyone on the show, every single person, loves David Eigenberg as a human being,” Zuritsky said. “We love him as an actor. We love Steve. We are really invested in the Steve-ness of him. He’s so full of life, and the Steves out there are good guys.”
As for Steve’s hearing loss, that was all Eigenberg’s idea, who wears hearing aids IRL. “When (showrunner) Michael Patrick (King) reconnected with David Eigenberg about the show, the very first thing that David said was, ‘I got hearing aids.’ It was literally what he led with,” said Zuritsky. “That actually wound up being Steve’s tone about his aging (in the show).”
Rottenberg added that Miranda’s journey on the show is supposed to represent the realities of what some women go through. “Grown couples grow apart, and people come to epiphanies about what their spouse is or isn’t fulfilling for them,” she said. “Miranda’s story was very representative of a certain path that a lot of women find themselves on.”
The executive producers’ interview on the matter comes after various outlets published essays criticizing how the series was treating the character, like The Cut’s “Steve Deserves Better” and Vogue’s “What Happened to the Men of Sex and the City.” Plus, fans have made their thoughts heard on Twitter.
But not to worry AJLT fans, because Steve will finally be getting his turn to take center stage soon enough. Zuritsky promised Steve will be confronting Miranda about the affair in an upcoming episode. “You’re going to get that scene,” Zuritsky confirmed. “You’re going to get that scene.” And with only three episodes left in the season, we may be getting a Steve redemption scene sooner than we think. Episode 8 airs Jan. 20 and is titled “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” and by the looks of the promo, Miranda will be having a sit-down-talk to Steve.
In fact, writers of AJLT had a feeling fans would jump to Steve’s defense, so much so that the assistant-directing department made “Team Miranda” and “Team Steve” buttons for the crew to choose from while filming. Zuritsky explained that when Eigenberg chose his pin, he handled it much like Steve would. “He took a ‘Team Miranda’ pin,” she said. “That’s so David Eigenberg. That’s just what Steve would do. You have to realize that there are hundreds of people who work on the series, and they’re sort of our first glimpse of what the audience is going to feel.”
Sounds like Eigenberg is a real-life Steve Brady. Season 1 of And Just Like That ends on Feb. 3. Tune in to watch the latest episodes every Thursday on HBO Max.
