Only Murders in the Building recap ahead of season 3

Not content with dominating the world of podcasts and documentaries, true crime mysteries recently hacked their way into the comedy world with Only Murders in the Building.

This popular case-cracking series features Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez as a trio of neighbours-turned-detectives who decide to funnel their fascination with figuring out who killed a fellow resident into a new podcast which also shares the name of the show itself.

Read more: What we know about Only Murders In The Building season 3

The show, which is available to stream on Disney+ in the UK, has seen its fair share of twists and turns alongside plenty of unexpected guest stars throughout its two already-released seasons.

With a third on the way, what better time to go back over some key casework files and catch up with everything that’s happened on Only Murders in the Building so far. Reader beware: Spoilers lurk below…

What happened in Only Murders in the Building season 1?

First airing back in 2021, the first series of Only Murders in the Building introduced us to Charles-Haden Savage (Martin), the former star of a hit crime-drama that aired in the 1990’s named Brazzos. Now semi-retired but holding onto his quasi-fame, he lives in the Arconia, a high-end New York apartment building.

Olivier Putnam (Martin), a Broadway director who’s fallen on difficult financial times, also lives in the building alongside Mabel Mora, a young artist. It’s not long before the trio cross paths in the building’s elevator where they also see fellow resident Tim Kono (Julian Cihi). After the building is suddenly evacuated, they discover there’s a dead body inside - and it’s Tim.

Read more: The best Steve Martin performances

The police seem sure that Tim’s death is suicide but Charles, Oliver and Mabel believe otherwise and decide to investigate his murder. While looking for the killer, they decide to start their own true-crime podcast to chronicle their journey. Everyone becomes a suspect as more details of Tim Kono’s connection to Mabel and various other people in the building start to emerge.

For a period of time, Charles believes that series guest-star Sting, who also lives in the Arconia, could be the potential guilty party before realising his innocence. As the case progresses, Charles meets a bassoon player named Jan and the pair strike up a romance and start dating.

Meanwhile, the growth in their podcast’s listenership spurs the police to question whether Tim’s death was actually a suicide and eventually, they re-open their case. After rival podcast host Cinda Canning (Tina Fey) mentions and mocks Only Murders in the Building on live TV, the podcast suddenly surges in popularity, gaining more dedicated fans in the process.

After many dead ends and incorrect accusations, the trio consider ditching the case entirely before they eventually discover that the killer was actually Jan who had previously dated Tim and poisoned him after he broke it off.

With Jan arrested and the case solved, the trio finally have time to celebrate but their back-slapping is cut short when an emergency text tells all residents to leave the Arconia. Upon doing so, they discover that the building’s board president, Bunny Folger (Jayne Houdyshell), has been killed, setting the scene for season two.

What happened in Only Murders in the Building season 2?

After being cleared of any involvement in Bunny’s murder, the trio try to move on with their lives but when Cinda’s rival true-crime podcast starts to imply they may have something to hide, they decide to restart their Only Murders in the Building podcast in an attempt to clear their names.

After realsizing that Bunny’s murder may have involved stolen paintings, Charles, Oliver and Mabel start following up this lead. Comedian Amy Schumer joins the show as herself, moving into the apartment once owned by former-resident Sting. Just as she’s cleared as a suspect, the podcasters discover Bunny’s pet parrot may know who killed her.

Meanwhile, Detective Kreps (Michael Rapaport), the police officer who initially interrogated Charles, Oliver and Mabel, continues to investigate Bunny’s murder but still holds suspicions about the trio’s involvement in the case.

After discovering hidden tunnels in the walls of the Arnocnia, Oliver, Charles and Mabel uncover more clues, while Oliver unearths some unexpected secrets about the paternity of his only son Will (Ryan Broussard), with whom he has a strained relationship.

After another batch of false leads, dead ends and potential killers, the three investigators ultimately learn that the real killer was Becky Butler (Adina Verson), the troubled assistant of rival podcast host Cinda. Together with her secret boyfriend Detective Kreps, the duo conspired to kill Bunny in order to boost the ratings of Cinda’s own true crime podcast.

The final moments of season two bring the action forward a year where we find Charles and Mabel attending a new play directed by Oliver. Things seem to be going well until chaos erupts when Oliver’s leading man Ben Glenroy (Paul Rudd) suddenly dies on stage, cueing up a new mystery for season three.

The first two episodes of Only Murders in the Building season 3 are on Disney+ now