Sarah Jessica Parker joins 2025 Booker Prize judging panel

 
Though Sarah Jessica Parker might seem an unexpected choice to judge the UK's most prestigious literary award, her recent foray into the publishing world has earned her a credible place on the 2025 Booker Prize panel.

The "Sex and the City" star, known globally for her acting career, has also made significant strides in the literary industry. In 2016, she took on the role of editorial director at SJP for Hogarth, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Last year, she launched her own imprint, SJP Lit, in collaboration with the independent publisher Zando. Beyond this, she regularly shares her literary recommendations with millions of followers on Instagram, cementing her position as a notable figure in the book community.

Gaby Wood, Chief Executive of the Booker Prize Foundation, welcomed Parker to the judging panel, stating that she had "enjoyed sharing book recommendations with Sarah Jessica, who has passionately supported contemporary fiction for many years." Parker now joins the ranks of other actors who have sat on the Booker panel, including Adjoa Andoh and Robert Webb. Webb, reflecting on the arduous reading task required of judges, once remarked that reading more than 150 books in seven months is "impossible.”

Parker, however, is up for the challenge. Speaking to The New York Times, she said the appointment couldn't have come at a better time, as she's not currently filming. "I will carve out every moment I can," she said, adding that she is "pretty optimistic" about handling the sheer volume of reading.

Nevertheless, she admitted the request to join the panel was initially intimidating. "It felt very daunting," Parker confessed. "I think of judges as academics, learned, experienced in ways I'm just not. I didn't pursue higher education. I don't have any degrees." This sense of being an outsider has lingered since she first entered the publishing world, where she often felt like an "interloper," constantly proving herself.