Yahoo News ‘Only Murders in the Building’ Season 3 Suspect Watch: Who Killed Paul Rudd?
[This story contains spoilers up to season three, episode seven of Only Murders in the Building.]
It started with a bang… well, not exactly, unless you count dropping on the floor as a “bang.” In reality it’s more like a “thud.” In fact, let’s go with that: It started with a thud — from none other than Paul Rudd!
Only Murders in the Building’s excellent third season has produced a litany of emotions, from unbridled laughter (Steve Martin’s foul-mouthed patter song shall forever live rent-free in my own personal White Room) to surprising levels of soulful depths. (Despite what you may read elsewhere, Martin Short’s a national treasure, and has been particularly moving this season as his lovestruck Oliver negotiates a budding relationship with Meryl Streep’s Loretta.) Through all of this, the show’s central premise remains intact: A murder mystery with enough perps on the proverbial board to keep us guessing all season long.
More from The Hollywood Reporter
The question at the start of the season (revisit that in full below) remains the show’s driving force, now seven episodes in: Who killed Ben Glenroy, the shamelessly smarmy actor played by Paul Rudd? Indeed, there could be multiple killers, as Ben died not once, but twice. First he was poisoned on stage and then revived at the hospital, only to plummet down an elevator shaft to his doom later that evening.
We can safely take the Martins Steve and Short off the suspect list, as well as Selena Gomez’s Mabel. At this point, any of the core podcasters inserting themselves into the narrative in an actively violent way feels like taking a jump with more self-destructive takes than, say, Splash: The Musical. Short of our heroes, then, which of the season three suspects did it? Seven episodes down, we’re honing in on the following candidates:
Dickie Glenroy (Jeremy Shamos)
The biggest suspect on the board exiting this week’s Only Murders? None other than Ben’s own brother and manager, Dickie (Jeremy Shamos). We learn hat he likely created CoBro as a child but received none of the credit. We also see him holding a bloody handkerchief at the end of episode seven. Dickie tries to get Mabel off the case, happy enough with all signs pointing at Ben’s stalker as the killer, even if recent evidence exonerates the man. Most signs point toward Dickie right now, which is actually a point in favor of his innocence, as there are still three episodes left in the season. It’s a bit early for an open-and-shut answer to the central question.
Tobert (Jesse Williams)
Robert without the “R” infiltrated Mabel’s circle of trust with ease, gaining access to the murder board and, therefore, an ability to track the team’s investigation. Few people benefit more from the podcast trio’s disbandment, as it not only weakens their pursuit of the truth but also opens up another revenue stream via Hashtag Bloody Mabel.
Cinda Canning (Tina Fey)
Tina Fey’s nefarious podcast mega host returned this season with a new haircut and a new heir apparent to the true crime genre: Bloody Mabel. What if Cinda and Tobert worked together to kill Ben and revolutionize Mabel’s reputation, catapulting all of their careers to another level? Let’s not forget that Cinda’s old assistant Poppy (aka Becky Butler) was outed as a killer last season. Does the murder apple fall far from the murder apple tree? Wait a minute, are there murder apple trees?
Loretta (Meryl Streep)
Just because Meryl Streep’s humble alter ego possesses a scrapbook fixated on Ben Glenroy does not mean she killed Ben Glenroy. However, it does mean we have to take her very seriously as a culprit until proven otherwise. Another possibility involves Loretta’s life imitating Oliver’s art, in that she once served as Ben’s (and perhaps Dickie’s) nanny, mirroring the plot of the play. Is that why she has what one could rightly call a Ben Glenroy stalker manifesto? Or, is she simply carrying precisely that — a stalker manifesto? Three episodes until we know more.
A Third Glenroy Brother (Paul Rudd, Jeremy Shamos or Another Actor Entirely)
Which of the Pickwick Triplets did it? It’s not only a very catchy patter song lyric, but perhaps some critical insight into the season’s core mystery. Oliver’s play focuses on three babies who witnessed or may have even committed a murder. Right now, we know about two Glenroy siblings. But what if there’s a secret third? This week’s episode revealed Dickie was adopted — does he have a twin, or even two brothers that we don’t know about? Are we in for some sort of The Prestige-level reveal? As long as we’re talking about incognito CoBros and not a small army of Hugh Jackman clones, we’re not only here for it, but feel pretty good about the possibility.
Matthew Broderick (Himself)
Okay, probably not, but the legendary actor joins the Only Murders cast this week as a heightened version of himself who overcommits to all of his parts. (He learned to write code for War Games, and let’s not revisit what he did to prepare for Election.) If Broderick had his eye on a killer role in Death Rattle, then killing Ben to know what it feels like to murder someone wouldn’t be beyond the pale — even if it’s not exactly likely.
Who do you think killed Ben Glenroy? I’ll be back for one more set of predictions for the penultimate episode in two weeks. In the meantime, you can revisit our first take below.
***
THR‘s first Suspect Watch, posted after premiere:
In its second season finale, Only Murders in the Building loudly announced its intentions for season three: Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez’s intrepid true crime podcasters were going to have to solve another murder mystery, with Paul Rudd playing the corpse in question. Stunt casting aside, the new case was another significant leap forward for the comedy on at least two fronts: The murder took place a full year after the events of seasons one and two, and the murder took place in a building outside of the titular… well, building.
At least, that’s how it seemed.
The Only Murders season three premiere, called “The Show Must,” which has released on Hulu amid the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes (which is why you won’t see any actors doing press for the season), takes back the death of Ben Glenroy (Rudd), if only for a little while. A vapid actor whose celebrity highlight reel includes projects such as “Cobro” and “Girl Cop,” Rudd’s Glenroy manages to survive his apparent on-stage demise from the season two finale, in which he appeared to die in front of a packed theater house on opening night of the new play “Death Rattle.” Technically, Glenroy did die, but only for an hour. His resurrection turns out to be similarly short-lived, as his battered body is discovered on top of an elevator by the end of the premiere by none other than Charles-Haden Savage (Martin), Oliver Putnam (Short) and Mabel Mora (Gomez), whose whodunnit podcast series is officially back in action with a brand new mystery to solve.
Across its first two episodes, Only Murders season three introduces (and reintroduces) the viewer to a litany of folks with plenty of motive and opportunity to kill the cookie-loving monster known as Ben Glenroy. Who done it? Let’s survey the suspects as the 10-episode season begins:
Loretta Durkin
Paul Rudd isn’t the only A-lister on board for Only Murders this season. The iconic Meryl Streep joins the cast this year as Loretta Durkin, one of the stars of “Death Rattle,” Oliver’s new Broadway show. In a major turn against type, Streep’s character is a struggling actress, long rejected by the industry and finally facing a chance at success.
The season begins by introducing Loretta and her backstory, setting her up as Oliver’s new love interest, and making tension between her and Ben clear. With Ben dead, the play is also likely dead, which means Oliver’s rule of no workplace romances may finally lift. Did Loretta kill Ben in order to open the door for a romance with Oliver? it feels a little light. And also, we’ve been here before, what with Charles-Haden’s ill-fated relationship with serial killer Jan (Amy Ryan). Still, she remains a top suspect, if not for motive then at least for a few key pieces of dialogue. (“Oliver tells me you’re one to look out for,” Ben says at one point, and later even Loretta exclaims: “Oh my God, it’s me! It’s me, isn’t it?”)
Dickie Glenroy
Played by Jeremy Shamos, a.k.a. the erstwhile Mr. Kettleman on Better Call Saul, Dickie is Ben’s brother and manager. He’s responsible for Ben’s diet, which must be strictly followed due to the actor’s commitment to playing superhero Cobro. With direct access to Ben’s food, Dickie could easily have poisoned Ben, a first murder attempt that ultimately went awry. Shortly before Ben’s final death, Dickie pulled his brother aside for a very important phone call. Was that an actual call, or something arranged to sneak Ben away somewhere a bit more private — like an elevator shaft, perhaps?
Tobert the Documentarian
Also known as “Robert with a T,” played by Jesse Williams. Tobert is Ben’s documentarian, on hand to film the hotshot actor’s Broadway debut. Williams is a significant name among the new Only Murders cast members, and he has one of the most significant “that’s the murderer” pieces of dialogue in the premiere: “Hey Broadway, I’m just an observer. This is literally the last time you’re going to hear my voice.” (Exactly what the killer would say.) Season two already took a meta route by having a podcaster as the murderer; casting a filmmaker in that role would be a natural next step for season three.
Donna and Clifford DiMeo
Then again, there’s always the producers of “Death Rattle,” mother-son duo Donna and Clifford, played by Linda Emond and Wesley Taylor. Right off the bat, these two give off major criminal vibes, what with an incredibly inappropriate kiss that no mother and son should share for any reason whatsoever. What’s more, Ben’s primadonna behavior has clearly rubbed the producers the wrong way; Ben can’t even remember Clifford’s name, only calling him “boy.” These two stand out as very likely suspects here in the early going of season three on a couple of fronts. One, “Clifford” is the same name as one of Martin Short’s most monstrous alter-egos, perhaps a not-so-subtle nod to the Only Murders Clifford’s murderous tendencies. For another, a pair of producers killing an actor and causing a show to stop down? Sounds eerily familiar…
Howard and the Arconia Residents
When considering who murdered in the building, always suspect the people who live in said building. This season, there’s no greater ambassador for the prime in-house suspect list than Howard, played by Michael Cyril Creighton, promoted to series regular for season three. The upgraded importance could be a tell, but he also has incentive to ruin the show, given that he auditioned for Oliver’s play and instead was cast as Oliver’s assistant. Enough of an excuse to commit a murder? Maybe not. It would also be a bitter pill to swallow for fans who have come to grow quite fond of the late, great Evelyn the cat’s cat dad. This early in the season — and this late into the series’ life cycle, however — anyone and everyone who lives at the Arconia should wind up on the whiteboard.
If it wasn’t Loretta, Dickie, Tobert, Donna, Clifford or Howard, who killed Ben Glenroy? Check back later in the season for another rundown of the suspects before the big reveal.
***
Only Murders in the Building season three releases new episodes Tuesdays on Hulu.
This story first posted on Aug. 8.
Best of The Hollywood Reporter
