It was only a matter of time before the gang from “Only Murders in the Building” hit Hollywood.
Possessing banter that was born on a Hollywood set, Martin Short, Steve Martin and Selena Gomez look right at home in the fourth season of the Hulu comedy.
Steve Martin, Selena Gomez and Martin Short are surprised when they meet the actors playing them in a movie version of "Only Murders in the Building."
There, the three are pitched a film based on their podcast (who knew it was that big?). Already cast, the feature finds Zach Galifianakis, Eugene Levy and Eva Longoria as the three sleuths. Short’s Oliver is a little hurt with who’s playing him (“Zach Galifragilisticexpialidocious”) and Gomez’s Mabel has reservations about consenting to a movie, but Martin’s Charles is eager to get back to the place where he sort of made a name for himself.
Along the way, they discover Charles’s stunt double, Sazz (Jane Lynch), is missing. Before they can see what the Brothers Sisters can do with the film, they’re back in New York, trying to piece together clues about a window with a bullet hole.
Could Sazz have been murdered by someone trying to take out Charles? Is Meryl Streep’s Loretta more than just a passing fancy for Oliver? And what about Mabel’s penchant for sequined dresses? Could it be a prompt for another Longoria line?
Selena Gomez, Meryl Streep and Martin Short, from left, are back in "Only Murders in the Building."
To give the situation a little structure (and push along the deal), a studio head (played by Molly Shannon) gets the three to Paramount and tries to woo them. When she sizes up the leading characters (“mumbling millennial charmer,” “unfunny uncle” and the one “everyone wants to strangle”), it’s right to have a little hesitation. (“Don’t do tequila,” Longoria tells Gomez after she recites a list of her side hustles.)
Before they know it, Scott Bakula, another Sazz faithful, is in their lives and has an alibi for his whereabouts … just in case.
The fourth season gives the stars plenty of opportunity to comment on another aspect of show business (their season three look at Broadway was particularly choice) and encounter more big names with attitude.
Hollywood calls those podcasters and they respond. From left, Steve Martin, Selena Gomez and Martin Short in "Only Murders in the Building."
Like Norma Desmond returning to Paramount in “Sunset Boulevard,” the three drink in the new atmosphere and should make Hollywood their second home.
While it’s too early to determine where this is going (even they admit “we’ve been very lucky with people dying in our building”), it could unravel in interesting ways.
Obviously, we hope regulars like Nathan Lane turn up. But if you’re looking for a potential suspect, be sure to scope out the party thrown in their honor. The room is filled with actors who would kill for a part.
“Only Murders in the Building” airs on Hulu.
