John Corbett was forced to lose weight ahead of And Just Like That... return

John Corbett was made to go through a makeover montage for his anticipated return in the latest episode of And Just Like That… Season 2.

Speaking on the show’s The Writers Room podcast, creator Michael Patrick King revealed that he forced the actor to lose weight and be "rock hard" for his comeback.

Corbett reprised his role as Aidan Shaw, the former flame of Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker in this week’s episode.

"We gave John a makeover," King revealed to fellow producers Julie Rottenberg and Elisa Zuritsky. "We cut his hair, we took the turquoise jewelry away. We told him he had to be rock hard when he came back."

The showrunner explained that he also asked Corbett to lose weight, a critique received well by the actor.

"He was eating fried chicken when I told him and he dropped the fried chicken on the plate and fell down in the booth that we were sitting in and said, 'I knew I was a fatty,'" King said.

King shared that Corbett then "came back rock hard with short hair," prepared to shoot his scenes.

According to the Emmy-winning director, the noticeable distinct appearance of Aiden was not "an aesthetic choice" but "a story choice."

"So here we are now, bringing Aidan back again, and we have tricks up our sleeve as to how he is new and what we can actually do with the storyline considering — and it's a very big consider — all the water under the bridge, all the pain they've already been through, how much Carrie has hurt him in the past and how badly he took the break up," he shared.

On Sex and the City, Carrie gets engaged to Aiden following her split from Big, played by Chris Noth, however, things end badly after the sex and relationships columnist cheats on him with Big.