Whatever Happened to Miranda’s Ex Skipper Johnston on ‘Sex and the City’?

Before Steve Brady (David Eigenberg) and Che Diaz (Sara Ramírez) came along on Sex and the City, there was Skipper Johnston (Ben Weber). He was one of Miranda’s (Cynthia Nixon) love interests in the first season of Sex and the City and a self-proclaimed “hopeless romantic.” Skipper and Miranda’s romantic relationship was very brief. Miranda was certain from the beginning that Skipper was not her type, but he was persistent.

Now that the hit HBO series is available to binge on Netflix, you might be thinking about Skipper again. He only appeared in the first two seasons, but he remains a divisive character amongst Sex and the City fans. Scroll down to get a refresher on all things Skipper Johnston and what Weber’s up to today.

What happened to Skipper?

Skipper made his first appearance in the pilot episode of Sex and the City. The website creator was a friend of Carrie’s (Sarah Jessica Parker) and declared from the get-go that he was “too nice” for New York City women. “I’m a romantic. I just have so much feeling,” he told Carrie, who then asked him if he was gay.

Carrie knew Miranda would hate a guy like Skipper, but she set him up with her bestie anyway. In the second episode of the series, Skipper whined that Miranda hadn’t called him back after their first date. He was insistent about wanting to know if he still had a chance with Miranda. Later, Miranda and Skipper hooked up for the first time.

Skipper appeared throughout the first season as his on-again, off-again relationship with Miranda continued. Miranda was never truly into Skipper, and they eventually started dating other people. In Season 1 Episode 7, Skipper and his new girlfriend had a chance encounter with Miranda and Carrie.

When Miranda called Skipper’s landline that night, Skipper was in the middle of having sex. Instead of ignoring the call, he picked up the phone and started chatting with Miranda while in bed with his girlfriend. Miranda gave Skipper a morsel of hope, so he broke up with his new girlfriend right then and there.

HBO

Skipper and Miranda hooked up again, but she still wanted to see other people. Skipper stormed out because he didn’t want to be Miranda’s “private stud horse.” Skipper and Miranda briefly reunited in the Season 1 finale, but they broke up offscreen.

Skipper’s final appearance was in Season 2 Episode 14. Skipper was still being Skipper. He complained to Carrie he still had “horrible luck with women.” Miranda spotted Skipper on the street, and he finally let her have it. He accused Miranda of tossing him out like “bad milk” and claimed to have finally gotten her out of his system. In that moment, Miranda was finally attracted to Skipper, but he ran away from her and didn’t look back.

After that, Skipper was never seen or heard from again. In an interview with EW celebrating the show’s 25th anniversary, Weber admitted he was a “little bit sad” about Skipper getting written out because “it did seem like there was going to be more. But [Candace Bushnell’s] book was very much like, every week she was dating somebody new, and the show became more like that. I understand where they went with the show, but yeah, it was sad.”

And Just Like That…, the Sex and the City revival that premiered in 2021, has brought back fan favorites from the original series, including Bitsy von Muffling (Julie Halston), Aidan Shaw (John Corbett), Enid Frick (Candice Bergen), Susan Sharon (Molly Price), and more. Given how many times Skipper and Miranda ran into each other, it wouldn’t be totally surprising for these characters to cross paths again after all these years.

What is Ben Weber doing now?

After his run on Sex and the City, Weber went on to guest star as Chris Beals on Everwood in Season 2. The actor starred in the 2000 film The Broken Hearts Club and also appeared in episodes of ER and The West Wing.

Weber had a notable recurring role as David Johnson in The Secret Life of the American Teenager. David dated Anne Juergens (Molly Ringwald) and was the biological father of Robert Johnson, Anne’s son and Amy’s (Shailene Woodley) younger brother. His latest role was Andy Genelli in the Manhunt: Unabomber anthology series.

If you’re an avid TV watcher, you’ve probably spotted Weber in a number of commercials. He’s starred in ads for Oscar Mayer, Coffee-Mate, and more over the years.

Is Skipper Johnston a nice guy or a hypocrite?

Skipper waxed and waned during his time on Sex and the City about how he was one of the only “nice guys” in New York City and women only wanted to date jerks. Was he being honest with himself?

Over the years, fans have debated Skipper’s true nature. Most viewers point to Skipper breaking up with his girlfriend during sex after Miranda called as the moment Skipper entered his villain era.

We never talk about Skipper from #SATC who broke up with his girlfriend during sex because Miranda called him. Who does something like that?! pic.twitter.com/gRixkBDKOY

— Nikie Red (@TheNikieRed) November 7, 2023

One fan on Reddit (see below) pointed out that Skipper “acts like he’s a victim of women” but then showed he was a “massive hypocrite” when he ended his relationship in the middle of a sexual encounter.

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However, there are Skipper defenders out there. One fan went so far as to say that Steve brought out Miranda’s “insecurities” and “always wanted her to change,” but Skipper “made Miranda feel good about herself.”

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How do you feel about Skipper? Should Miranda have given him a real chance? Was his breakup-during-sex fiasco forgivable? Let me know in the comments below.

Sex and the City, Seasons 1-6, Max and now available on Netflix