Mario Cantone on the Moment Willie Garson Shared His Cancer Prognosis: 'We Both Cried and It Was Horrible'

Mario Cantone opened up about the highs and lows of the first season of And Just Like That... in an interview with PEOPLE

Mario Cantone is opening up about the ups and downs of filming And Just Like That... as the 10-episode first season comes to an end.

The show dealt with a lot of unexpected storylines during its first season, including the real-life death of his TV husband. Willie Garson, who played Carrie Bradshaw's best friend Stanford Blatch, died of pancreatic cancer after a private battle at the age of 57 as the show was actively filming.

Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis confirmed co-star Sarah Jessica Parker was the only person who knew, and Cantone shares just how well he hid his illness.

"I had no idea until he told me," Cantone, who plays Anthony Marentino, tells PEOPLE. "I thought he was kidding. And then he turned his head and I saw his look and I went, and then I sat down next to him. We both cried and it was horrible."

The entire cast was hit hard by the news of Garson's death, but the show continued on with his character being written out of the series in the fourth episode.

Stanford notifies his husband that he's moving to Tokyo to work with his TikTok star client. While it was devastating for Anthony that his husband of 11 years had suddenly left him, Cantone thinks Garson's absence was handled "very well."

HBO Max

"I love that scene [where Anthony tells Carrie about Stanford leaving]," he says. "I think it's beautifully written," he says.

Cantone tells PEOPLE he is just as sad as Sex and the City super fans now that the season has come to an end.

There's been no official word of a second season quite yet, but Cantone, who chatted with PEOPLE from his New York City apartment the day after the finale dropped, says the entire cast is ready to go.

"I think we all want to do it," Cantone says. "I hope so. We had a great time this season."

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Should the show have a future, Cantone would like to see his character get more involved in all of the ladies' lives.

"I hope I'm still in Carrie's life, in Charlotte's life and I hope to be in Miranda's life more too, since she has had a shift in her life," Cantone says. "I hope that the business continues. I would love to meet somebody, you know, a man that I can have a relationship with whether it works out or not. I'd like a little bit more."

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As Cantone awaits word on the show's future, he's staying busy doing upcoming stand-up shows April 16-21 at Cafe Carlyle in New York City. "You'll come see me, do my standup and be politically incorrect and get canceled. So come on!"