Four seasons into Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, there’s one pressing question that may catch up with amateur sleuths and true-crime podcast hosts Charles (Steve Martin), Mabel (Selena Gomez), and Oliver (Martin Short): when will the city of New York condemn the apparent Upper West Side death trap that is the Arconia apartment complex?
“The idea of how out of control it’s all getting is underneath a lot of season four—for the building, the community,” series creator John Hoffman told Vanity Fair following the third season finale last October. “But also, that incident occurred from across the courtyard of the same building. So that’s going to be intriguing to explore.”
From the “incident” in question, to new cast members and a cross-country location, here’s everything we know so far about Only Murders season four.
Who is in Only Murders in the Building season four?
It was reported this week that none other than Saturday Night Live and The White Lotus alum Molly Shannon has joined the cast for the comedy’s fourth season. According to Deadline, she’ll play “a high-powered LA businesswoman who finds herself drawn into the world of the investigation in NY.” Shannon confirmed her casting on Instagram, writing,“I’m so excited. Can’t wait to be in that FANCY building!!!”
In addition to Martin, Short, and Gomez, other starry cast members who could pop up after multiple seasons with the show are Jackie Hoffman as the no-nonsense Arconia resident Uma, Oscar frontrunner Da’Vine Joy Randolph as the detective often warring with the main trio, and—likely via flashbacks—Jane Lynch as Charles’s beloved stand-in. Two more new cast members who could return in the fourth season? Meryl Streep as actress Loretta and Jesse Williams as documentarian Tobert, who became love interests for Oliver and Mabel, respectively. In the third season, both characters separate from their significant others in order to relocate to Los Angeles—a problem that will be mitigated by the season’s new location.
Vanity Fair has reached out to Hulu for comment on the status of Streep and Williams’ potential returns. Hoffman previously told The Hollywood Reporter that there is “no greater hope” for him than to bring back established characters.. “I love them both, Jesse and Meryl, everyone. I mean, for God’s sakes, I would bring Paul [Rudd] back if we can,” he continued. (Which would be tough, since Rudd’s character got murdered in season three.) “Listen, I would bring everyone back, and that might happen. Victims, killers, they’re all able to play in the landscape within this sort of certain narrative ways we can tell our stories.”
Where will Only Murders in the Building season four take place?
After three seasons in the Big Apple, the Arconia’s most infamous tenants are headed to the west coast. “Well, I’m very excited to see Steve, Martin, and Selena take a little break from the apartment building and come to Los Angeles,” Disney Television Group President Craig Erwich told Deadline after appearing at a Television Critics Association (TCA) panel on Saturday. “So in the same way that John Hoffman used the canvas of Broadway to tell what I think was one of the most unique seasons you’ve ever seen, the same unique Only Murders take will be applied to Los Angeles, which I’m really excited about.”
What will Only Murders in the Building season four be about?
In the season 3 finale, after Wesley Taylor’s Clifford, demonic nepo baby of Linda Emond’s Broadway producer Donna DeMeo, is unmasked as the killer of Paul Rudd’s movie star character Ben Glenroy, another homicide emerges.
At the opening night celebration of Oliver’s musical, Charles’ body double Sazz Pataki—played by Lynch—heads to his apartment for a mid-party booze run. But she is seemingly shot upon arrival, left on the ground bleeding out in Charles’ kitchen. The bond Sazz and Charles shared will be a motivating force for our central characters, Hoffman previously told VF. Said the creator, “That will also create a sense of the trio—more than ever—coming together to say, we have to get this [killer] for deeper reasons in some way, and many other tethering notions that felt like great fodder and possibilities for freshness in a new season.”
When does Only Murders in the Building season four come out?
No official release date has been announced, but the series will likely premiere later this year, sticking to a production schedule established with the first season debuting in 2021 and new installments following in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
