Only Murders in the Building

Only Murders in the Building is an American comedy mystery television series created by Steve Martin and John Hoffman. The plot follows three strangers, played by Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, with a shared interest in true crime podcasts who become friends while investigating suspicious deaths in their affluent Upper West Side apartment building and producing their own podcast about the cases. Its three 10-episode seasons premiered on Hulu in August 2021, June 2022, and August 2023. In October 2023, it was renewed for a fourth season.
The series has received critical acclaim for its comedic approach to crime fiction, as well as the performances and chemistry of the lead cast. It has received nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series and Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy. Martin and Short have gained comedy acting nominations at the Primetime Emmy Awards and Golden Globe Awards, and Gomez has also been nominated for a Golden Globe.
Cast and characters
Main
Steve Martin as Charles-Haden Savage, a semi-retired actor who was the star of a popular 1990s crime drama, Brazzos
Matthew Lamb as young Charles
Martin Short as Oliver Putnam, an ambitious but financially struggling Broadway director who spawns the idea of the podcast and becomes its director
Samuel Farnsworth as young Oliver
Selena Gomez as Mabel Mora, a young artist who is living alone in her aunt's unit and who was friends with the first season's murder victim, Tim Kono, through her childhood and teenage years
Madeleine Valencia (season 1) and Caroline Valencia (season 2) as young Mabel
Aaron Dominguez as Oscar Torres (season 1), a friend of Mabel and Tim who was wrongly convicted of the murder of their friend Zoe ten years earlier, has recently been released from prison, and dates Mabel for a while
Amy Ryan as Jan Bellows (season 1; recurring, season 2), a professional bassoonist who begins dating Charles
Cara Delevingne as Alice Banks (season 2), an artist and Mabel's love interest
Adina Verson as Poppy White (season 2; guest, season 1), Cinda's ambitious but abused assistant. She later reveals her true identity as Becky Butler, the subject of the All Is Not OK in Oklahoma crime podcast.
Michael Cyril Creighton as Howard Morris (season 3; recurring, seasons 1–2), a cat-loving resident of the Arconia whose cat died the same night as Tim Kono
Special guest
Paul Rudd as Ben Glenroy (season 3; guest, season 2), a Hollywood actor who is murdered on the opening night of his first Broadway play
Meryl Streep as Loretta Durkin (season 3), a struggling actress and Oliver's love interest, who stars in his Broadway show
Recurring
Julian Cihi as Tim Kono (season 1), a resident of the Arconia who dies in the first episode. The mysterious circumstances surrounding his death spur Charles, Oliver, and Mabel to do their own investigation.
Da'Vine Joy Randolph as Donna Williams, a detective on the Kono murder case who initially closed the case but becomes interested again after her wife starts listening to the podcast
Tina Fey as Cinda Canning, the host of the true crime podcast All Is Not OK in Oklahoma, a parody of Serial
Jackie Hoffman as Uma Heller, an ornery Arconia resident
Jayne Houdyshell as Bunny Folger, the iron-fisted board president of the Arconia whose murder is investigated in the second season
Houdyshell also voices Mrs. Gambolini (season 2), Bunny's pet parrot.
Nathan Lane as Teddy Dimas (seasons 1–2), an old friend and patron of Oliver's family, who has ties to organized crime and agrees to sponsor the podcast
James Caverly as Theo Dimas, Teddy's son
Ryan Broussard as Will Putnam, Oliver's son
Teddy Coluca as Lester, the Arconia's doorman
Vanessa Aspillaga as Ursula (seasons 1–2), the Arconia's building manager
Russell G. Jones as Dr. Grover Stanley (seasons 1–2), a therapist who lives at the Arconia
Jaboukie Young-White as Sam, Daniel Oreskes as Marv, Ali Stroker as Paulette, and Orson Hong as Grant (seasons 1–2), enthusiastic fans of the Only Murders in the Building podcast
Zainab Jah as Ndidi Idoko (season 1), Tim Kono's next-door neighbor
Maulik Pancholy as Arnav (season 1), Charles' next-door neighbor
Olivia Reis as Zoe Cassidy (season 1), a friend of Mabel, Tim, and Oscar who died ten years earlier after falling from the roof of the Arconia
Jane Lynch as Sazz Pataki, Charles' stunt double
Zoe Colletti as Lucy (season 2), the teenage daughter of Charles' ex-girlfriend, with whom Charles has a tenuous father–daughter relationship
Michael Rapaport as Detective Kreps (season 2), a police detective investigating Bunny's murder
Christine Ko as Nina Lin (season 2), Bunny's protégée and the Arconia's new board president
Ariel Shafir as Ivan (season 2), a server at Bunny's regular diner
Andrea Martin as Joy Payne (seasons 2- 3), Charles' longtime makeup artist and love interest
Jason Veasey as Jonathan Bridgecroft (seasons 2-3), Howard's neighbor and love interest, and an actor in Oliver's show
Linda Emond as Donna DeMeo (season 3), a Broadway producer who funds Oliver's return to Broadway
Ashley Park as Kimber Min (season 3), a young actress and influencer who plays Ben's love interest in Oliver's show
Jeremy Shamos as Dickie Glenroy (season 3), Ben's adopted brother and manager
Wesley Taylor as Clifford "Cliff" DeMeo (season 3), Donna's clingy son who co-produces Oliver's play
Jesse Williams as Tobert (season 3), a camera operator hired by Ben to make a documentary about his Broadway debut
Guest
Adriane Lenox as Roberta (season 1), Oliver's ex-wife
Sting as a fictionalized version of himself (season 1), an Arconia resident
Roy Wood Jr. and Jacob Ming-Trent as Vaughn and Lucian (season 1), hosts of a horticulture podcast who give Charles and Oliver a ride
Jimmy Fallon as himself (season 1)
Mandy Gonzalez as Silvia Mora (season 1), Mabel's mother
Amy Schumer as a fictionalized version of herself (season 2), who moves into Sting's former apartment and proposes a TV series to Oliver based on their podcast
Ben Livingston as Charles' late father (season 2)
Shirley MacLaine as Rose Cooper (season 2), who is Charles' father's lover and painter, pretending to be Bunny's mother, Leonora Folger
Mark Consuelos as Mabel's late father (season 2)
Noma Dumezweni as Maxine (season 3), a theater critic
Adrian Martinez as Gregg Rivera (season 3), an obsessed fan of Ben's
Peter Bartlett as Jerry Blau, a washed-up director (season 3)
Matthew Broderick as a fictionalized version of himself (season 3), who is briefly cast in Oliver's show as Charles' replacement
Mel Brooks as himself (season 3)
Episodes
Season 1 (2021)
Season 2 (2022)
Season 3 (2023)
Production
Development
Steve Martin conceived the idea for Only Murders in the Building ten years before its premiere. His original idea involved three elderly men who discover that they are all obsessed with solving crimes, but are too old and tired to go outside, so they decide to solve crimes that are only in the building. The idea later developed with one of the old men changed to a younger woman. In January 2020, it was announced that Martin and Martin Short would star in the then untitled Hulu series, created by Martin and John Hoffman, with Martin, Short, and Hoffman as executive producers, alongside Dan Fogelman, with 20th Television serving as the studio. On September 14, 2021, Hulu renewed the series for a second season. On July 11, 2022, the series was renewed for a third season. On October 3, 2023, it was renewed for a fourth season.
Casting
Alongside the initial announcement, it was announced Martin and Short would star in the series. In August 2020, Selena Gomez joined the cast and also serves as an executive producer. In November 2020, Aaron Dominguez joined the cast in a series regular role. In January 2021, Amy Ryan joined the cast in a series regular role and Nathan Lane joined the cast in a recurring role. On December 1, 2021, it was reported that Cara Delevingne joined the cast as a series regular for the second season. On January 12, 2022, Short announced that Shirley MacLaine and Amy Schumer were cast to guest star for the second season. On February 11, 2022, Michael Rapaport joined the cast in a recurring role for the second season. On October 25, 2022, Jesse Williams was cast in a recurring capacity for the third season. On January 17, 2023, Meryl Streep was cast in an undisclosed capacity for the third season. On February 23, 2023, Ashley Park joined the cast in a recurring role for the third season. In March 2023, Jeremy Shamos, Linda Emond, Wesley Taylor, Don Darryl Rivera, Allison Guinn, and Gerald Caesar were cast in recurring capacities for the third season. On April 20, 2023, Michael Cyril Creighton was promoted to series regular for the third season.
Filming
Principal photography for the first season began on December 3, 2020, in New York City, and concluded in April 2021. The Belnord was used for exterior shots of the Arconia. Filming of the second season began on December 1, 2021. Filming for the third season began in January 2023 and concluded in late April.
Music
A digital album for the score was released on August 27, 2021, four days before the series' debut. On July 15, 2022, the original song that was played briefly in the season 2 episode "Here's Looking at You", "Angel in Flip-Flops", was released online. It was performed by Steve Martin as his character Charles-Haden Savage and written by Martin and Kirker Butler, with Paul Shaffer as producer. An album for season 2 was released on August 12, 2022. An album for season 3 was released on September 15, 2023, followed by a deluxe edition on October 4.
In September 2021, Canadian musician Nicholas Thorburn accused Siddhartha Khosla of plagiarism, alleging that the title music had been taken from music that he composed for the similarly themed podcast Serial.
Release
Only Murders in the Building premiered on August 31, 2021, on Hulu. Internationally, the series premiered on the same day on Disney+ under the dedicated streaming hub Star, as an original series, and on Star+ in Latin America. Disney+ Hotstar released the series in select territories on September 3, 2021. On Disney+, Disney+ Hotstar, and Star+, Only Murders in the Building episodes were scheduled to debut on a weekly basis. The second season premiered on June 28, 2022. The third season premiered on August 8, 2023.
Reception
Audience viewership
On September 3, 2021, it was reported that Only Murders in the Building set a record for the most-watched comedy premiere in Hulu history. On October 28, 2021, Hulu Originals president Craig Erwich said in an interview with Vulture that the show had become the most-watched comedy ever on Hulu "by a good measure." In the same article, Vulture reported that, according to Parrot Analytics, the show went from having about 16 times the audience demand in the U.S. as an average show when it debuted on August 31 to generating 37 times typical demand by the time the season 1 finale dropped on October 19. This meant that the day after the finale the show ranked as high as 14th on the list of most in-demand shows in the U.S. and signaled a "massive" 135% growth rate that according to Erwich is mainly attributable to word of mouth. According to the streaming aggregator JustWatch, Only Murders in the Building was the most-streamed TV series across all U.S. platforms during the week ending October 24, 2021, and second during the week ending October 31, 2021.
According to Parrot Analytics, which looks at consumer engagement in consumer research, streaming, downloads, and on social media, Only Murders in the Building was the third-most in-demand streaming original series in the U.S. during the week of August 13 to 19, 2022, as well as during the week of August 20 to 26. According to Whip Media, it was the most-streamed TV series across all U.S. platforms during the week ending August 7, 2022, and during the week of August 28. According to the streaming aggregator JustWatch, it was the third-most streamed TV series across all U.S. platforms during the week ending July 3, 2022.
Critical response
For the first season, review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating with an average rating of 8/10, based on 107 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Only Murders in the Buildings silly approach to true crime obsessives is at once hilarious and insightful, thanks in large part to its extremely charming central trio." Metacritic gave the first season a weighted average score of 76 out of 100 based on 34 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Kristen Baldwin of Entertainment Weekly gave the first season a "B" grade and wrote, "Only Murders delivers above-average laughs, a clever mystery, and a starry cast. But it's hard to shake the feeling that the show missed an opportunity to be something special." Reviewing for Rolling Stone, Alan Sepinwall gave a rating of four and a half out of five stars and said, "The series soon turns out to belike The Princess Bride, Galaxy Quest, or Jane the Virginthat rare and wonderful thing: the parody that also offers a great example of the genuine article."
For the second season, Rotten Tomatoes reported a 98% approval rating with an average rating of 8.05/10, based on 116 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus states, "Only Murders in the Building gets a new lease on life with a knottier sophomore outing that retains the series' core charm and wit." Metacritic gave the second season a weighted average score of 79 out of 100 based on 25 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
For the third season, Rotten Tomatoes reported a 96% approval rating with an average rating of 7.9/10, based on 113 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus states, "Relocating the action to the theatre, Only Murders in the Building can take a bow for yet another twisty mystery handled with a good-humored touch." Metacritic gave the third season a weighted average score of 77 out of 100 based on 33 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Accolades
The seventh episode of the first season was given the Seal of Authentic Representation from the Ruderman Family Foundation for the portrayal of Theo by James Caverly, as an actor with a disability and at least five lines of dialogue. The first season was recognized with The ReFrame Stamp for hiring people of underrepresented gender identities, and of color.
Notes
References
External links
Official pilot screenplay
Only Murders in the Building
2020s American comedy-drama television series
2020s American LGBT-related comedy television series
2020s American LGBT-related drama television series
2020s American mystery television series
2021 American television series debuts
Bisexuality-related television series
English-language television shows
Hulu original programming
Murder in television
Primetime Emmy Award-winning television series
Television series about podcasting
Television series by 20th Century Fox Television
Television series created by Steve Martin
Television shows filmed in New York City
Television shows set in Manhattan