From multi-hyphenate B.J. Novak’s sly, underrated ‘Vengeance’ to the new darkly comedic Peacock series ‘Based on a True Story,’ starring Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina, there’s no shortage of films and shows which use true crime podcasts (and America’s love of them) as a leaping-off point to explore both fandom and obsessiveness.
But the series which arguably helped kick-start if not fully cement the popular trend, Hulu’s ‘Only Murders in the Building,’ is coming back for another serving of dryly apportioned mayhem, with the first trailer for its 10-episode third season, debuting August 8th, both setting up the full arc of its new mystery and also giving fans a look at some its suspects.
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(L to R) Martin Short as Oliver, Selena Gomez as Mabel, and Steve Martin as Charles in Hulu’s ‘Only Murders in the Building.’ Photo: Craig Blankenhorn/Hulu.
Following the surprise death of actor Ben Glenroy (Paul Rudd) in the finale of the show’s second season, unlikely friends Charles-Haden Savage (Steve Martin), Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) and Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez) find themselves thrust into an investigation of the tragedy that took place behind the scenes at Oliver’s Broadway show. It’s of course familiar territory for the trio, who first bonded by creating a podcast to explore the culprit behind a mysterious death at the Arconia, their shared Upper West Side apartment complex. “Who are we without a homicide?” asks Mabel in the trailer.
The solution? Another iteration of their podcast, naturally. “Finding this killer is the only way you’ll ever have a show,” Mabel tells Oliver, playing to his self-interest. With everyone in the theater being a possible suspect — including costar Loretta Durkin (Meryl Streep) — the threesome sets out to uncover who killed Oliver’s leading man, and why.
Highlights of the trailer, which serves up brief glimpses of guest stars like Ashley Park and Jesse Williams, include Streep bumbling her way awkwardly through a table read, at least one white-room fantasy sequence, and Mabel admitting with a shrug that most of her conversations with Charles and Oliver revolve around murder “and how to connect Bluetooth — we talk about that a lot.” The trailer also seemingly points to no small amount of fun had at the expense of musical theater, touting original music from the composers of ‘La La Land,’ ‘Waitress’ and ‘Hairspray.’
‘Only Murders in the Building’ is co-created by writers Martin and John Hoffman, who also serve as executive producers along with Short, Gomez, ‘This Is Us’ creator Dan Fogelman, and Jess Rosenthal. Nominated for a total of seven Golden Globe Awards, along with six Emmy Award nominations in 2022 and three additional pending nominations this year, the series has proven to be a hit with critics, and therefore one of Hulu’s most recognizable and forward-facing shows.
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Meryl Streep as Loretta in Hulu’s ‘Only Murders in the Building.’ Photo by: Patrick Harbron/Hulu.
The series has also proven a magnet for notable guest stars. For his role in “The Boy From 6B” in the first season, Nathan Lane won an Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Award. Sting, meanwhile, enjoyed some time trending on social media courtesy of his cameo as a fictionalized version of himself. Other high-profile comedic talent who’ve popped up in either guest or recurring roles include Tina Fey, Jane Lynch, Amy Schumer, Jimmy Fallon, Shirley MacLaine, Roy Wood Jr., and Jackie Hoffman.
One can only hope that Streep — who’s had the chance to showcase some of her comedic gifts on the big screen in recent years with ‘Mary Poppins Returns,’ ‘The Laundromat’ and ‘Don’t Look Up’ — gets the chance to fully deliver upon what looks like a richly silly character.
(L to R) Selena Gomez as Mabel, Martin Short as Oliver and Steve Martin as Charles in Hulu’s ‘Only Murders in the Building.’ Photo: Patrick Harbron/Hulu.
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