MAX‘s And Just Like That… is a continuation of HBO’s Sex and the City that sees most of that show’s lead characters more or less settled down. Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) is content to wait for Aidan (John Corbett) to finish raising his troubled teen son, Charlotte (Kristin Davis) is happily devoted to Harry (Evan Handler), and sparks are flying once more between Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) and her work crush Joy (Dolly Wells). New addition Lisa Todd Wexley (Nicole Ari Parker) is also right where she wants to be romantically, as one half of a power couple. Which leaves luxury real estate broker Seema Patel (Sarita Choudhury) as the only main character who is still out there searching for Mr. Right.
In And Just Like That… Season 3 Episode 2 “The Rat Race,” Seema’s real estate partner decides to fix the problem himself by setting her up with a matchmaker played by Saturday Night Live legend Cheri Oteri.
**Spoilers for And Just Like That… Season 3 Episode 2 “The Rat Race,” now streaming on MAX**
In last week’s And Just Like That… Season 3 premiere, Seema broke up with her dashing, yet perpetually distracted, boyfriend Ravi (Armin Amiri). This week, she’s back on the prowl and it’s not going well. It’s going so poorly that her partner Elliot (John Glover) stages an intervention. He tells her that he’s tired of watching her ruin her own love life, so he’s setting her up with a “Sydney.” The twist is that Sydney isn’t a new suitor, but a high brow matchmaker played by Cheri Oteri.
Here’s everything you need to know about new And Just Like That… character Sydney Cherkov…
And Just Like That… Season 3 Episode 2 “The Rat Race” introduces matchmaker Sydney Cherkov, played by Saturday Night Live alum Cheri Oteri. Sydney is hired by Elliot Poust to help Seema finally find a husband. As soon as Sydney meets Seema, she dresses the glamorous real estate broker down, cuttingly blaming her for her own single status.
Seema briefly agrees to take Sydney’s advice, dressing demurely in pastels for a date with a handsome man. However, when Seema tells her date that she’s honestly more of an alpha, he bolts. Sydney explains to Seema that most men looking to settle down want to be in the driver’s seat. The implication is that in order to find love, Seema has to change herself. Naturally, and thankfully, Seema rejects this notion.
If Sydney Cherkov seems familiar to you, it could be that you’ve seen the Millionaire Matchmaker. (Patti Stanger is a clear influence on this character.) It could also simply be that you’re someone who obsessively watched Saturday Night Live in the ’90s. Cheri Oteri was famous for her Barbra Walters impression and the “Cheerleaders” sketches she did with Will Ferrell.
Oteri isn’t the first Saturday Night Live alum to guest star on a show set in the Sex and the City universe. Molly Shannon played one of Carrie’s publishers and Julia Sweeney appeared as a nun on Sex and the City.
It’s unclear if Sydney Cherkov will be back in a future And Just Like That… episode, but it’s clear from Oteri’s social media that she loved being on the show.