Though the world may never get to see a third Sex and the City movie,
that doesn’t mean Sarah Jessica Parker is ready to hang up her Manolo Blahniks for good just yet.
Nearly 15 years after the final episode of the hit HBO series aired in 2004, the actress has very briefly revived her role as Carrie Bradshaw, recreating the iconic opening bus sequence in a new commercial for Stella Artois (above.) The 15-second spot is part of the beer brand’s partnership with Matt Damon‘s non-profit organization Water.org, which provides access to clean water to communities across the world.
“It was peculiar in a way, but really, really fun and joyful,” Parker tells PEOPLE exclusively of shooting the ad. “It was sort of like time stood still for a second and this alternate universe of that life was presented again.”
In the video, Parker wears a metallic gold cropped button-down shirt with a black belt, bejeweled gloves and a baby blue tulle skirt—a subtle nod to the pink tutu she sported in the original sequence.
And instead of “Carrie Bradshaw knows good sex,” the memorable sign on the bus that splashes a puddle of water on her in the original opening, the sign now reads “1 bottle = 1 month of clean water” with a Stella Artois label on the side. The new banner sparks Carrie to rethink her beverage of choice—a cosmopolitan, as any casual SATC fan knows—using that signature catchphrase. “I couldn’t help but wonder…wasn’t it obvious?” Parker says in the commercial. “You make a little change to do a lot of good.”
The Divorce star tells PEOPLE that she’s “never been asked to reprise Carrie Bradshaw for a campaign,” but was excited when she was approached. “I just thought it was incredibly clever, and it made perfect sense. I really feel that this cause is important and urgent, and reviving Carrie in that moment was just the cherry on the sundae.”
Damon, who co-founded Water.org with Gary White in 2009, says that bringing Parker on board was a no-brainer. “It’s so huge for us to have this iconic character in this iconic moment to drive people to take action,” he tells PEOPLE.
The actor also stars in a new Stella commercial (above) promoting the brand’s Pour It Forward campaign, which, as referenced in Parker’s ad, promises to provide a month of clean water for every bottle of their beer sold in stores or at a bar/restaurant.
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“We know we have this huge problem: over a million kids are dying every year totally needlessly and lives are affected in horrible ways, girls are out of school because they’re doing water collection, but what can we actually do about it?” Damon tells PEOPLE. “And Stella has done a great job of providing this action that people can take. Going into a bar and having a beer poured for you and you’re giving someone who you’ll never meet safe water for a month. It’s a real way you can help, and to have Sarah Jessica—or, Carrie Bradshaw—show people how to do that, it’s just awesome for us.”
