‘Only Murders’ Season 5’s Release Schedule Is the Best of Both Worlds

Only Murders in the Building is returning for its fifth season, bringing the dynamic trio back to investigate the murder of the Arconia’s beloved long-time doorman, Lester Coluca (Teddy Coluca). At the end of Season 4, Charles (Steve Martin) and Mabel (Selena Gomez) found his body in the fountain at the front of the building, and they were devastated. The season will focus on their investigation into his presumed murder, bringing back many returning characters as well as introducing an entirely new cast of potential suspects and allies.

How Many Episodes Will There Be?

Hulu

Only Murders in the Building Season 5 will have 10 episodes, just like the previous four seasons. The show streams on Hulu in the U.S. and Disney+ in Canada. In 2026, once Hulu merges with the single Disney+ app, the series will presumably move to Disney+ globally. The first three episodes will be released at once on Tuesday, September 9, 2025 for fans to binge, after which there will be one episode weekly through October 28, 2025.

What To Know So Far About Season 5

Hulu

Season 5 will, as noted, be centered around solving the murder of Lester, who mysteriously wound up dead in the fountain of the Arconia at the end of Season 4. While the death is initially presumed an accident, Charles, Mabel, and Oliver (Martin Short) are convinced it’s foul play. As they come upon various clues, they realize their suspicions lead to a web of secrets and lies that involve powerful billionaires, mobsters, and even some residents of the building itself.

As per the official synopsis from Hulu, “the trio discovers a deeper divide between their storied city they thought they knew and the new New York evolving around them – one where the old mob fights to hold on as newer, even more dangerous players emerge.”

Who Is in ‘Only Murders in the Building’ Season 5

Image via Hulu

The three main cast members, Martin, Short, and Gomez, return as the central protagonists of the show, along with many other returning characters. These include Arconia building residents Howard (Michael Cyril Creighton), Uma (Jackie Hoffman), Teddy (Nathan Lane), Theo (James Caverly), and Dr. Grover Stanley (Russell G. Jones). Also returning is Vanessa Aspillaga as building manager Ursula, Da’Vine Joy Randolph as Detective Donna Williams, Meryl Streep as Loretta, and Coluca himself, presumably through flashbacks as was done with victims in previous seasons.

A few new characters from Season 4 will be back as well, namely Richard Kind as the eye-patch-wearing, pink-eye-suffering Vince Fish, resident of the west tower of the Arconia, and Téa Leoni as Sofia Caccimelio. She only made a brief cameo at the end of Season 4 as a wealthy woman searching for her missing husband, Nicky.

The new cast list for Season 5 is impressive, including a pair of Academy Award winners.

• Renée Zellweger (Bridget Jones’ movies, Jerry Maguire): a wealthy billionaire
• Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained): a wealthy billionaire
• Bobby Cannavale (Boardwalk Empire, The Watcher): Nicky Caccimelio, Sofia’s husband, a mobster who had a run-in with Lester on the night he died.
• Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson movies, We Were the Lucky Ones): a wealthy billionaire
• Keegan-Michael Key (Key & Peele, Schmigadoon!): Mayor Tillman
• Dianne Wiest (Hannah and Her Sisters, Parenthood): Mrs. Coluca
• Jermaine Fowler (Coming 2 America, Superior Donuts): the new Arconia doorman
• Beanie Feldstein (Lady Bird, Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising)

The new actors are mostly in undisclosed roles, the details of their characters being kept tightly under wraps. But some details are alluded to in the trailer, giving you an idea of who they’ll be playing.

Is There a Trailer?

Yes, a trailer was released in early August. As per the trailer, the investigation begins with the discovery of a severed human finger and results in the trio having to go face-to-face with the mob. As usual, the hijinks stack up as the podcasters get themselves into lots of hot water, including being involved with a potential second dead body, wealthy billionaires sniffing around a murder scene, and even hook-ups with a mob wife. “The easiest way to win,” says Zellweger’s character, “is to make your opponent think they’re playing a different game entirely.”

The fourth season might be showcasing a lot of the same, but that formula is precisely what makes Only Murders in the Building so endearing. Even though the premise is repetitive, every new season still seems fresh and progresses the core story forward in some way. You can expect the same level of hilarity as with the previous seasons, the same wonderful chemistry among the leads, and lots of new angles to follow as you try to solve the cases, too, from the comfort of your couch alongside the unlikely amateur sleuths from the show.

Only Murders in the Building

4
/5

Release Date

August 31, 2021

Network

Hulu

Showrunner

John Hoffman

Directors

Jamie Babbit, John Hoffman, Cherien Dabis, Chris Koch, Robert Pulcini, Shari Springer Berman, Adam Shankman, Don Scardino, Jesse Peretz, Jessica Yu, Jude Weng, Chris Teague

Writers

Ben Smith, Matteo Borghese, Rob Turbovsky, Kristin Newman, Madeleine George, J. J. Philbin, Ben Philippe, Kirker Butler, Jake Schnesel, Peter Swanson, Stephen Markley, Rachel Burger, Kenny Schwartz, Rick Wiener, Valentina Garza, Elaine Ko, Tess Morris, Kim Rosenstock, Sas Goldberg, Thembi Banks