A true-crime podcast obsession turns dangerous in Only Murders In the Building.
Steve MartinandMartin Shorthave conquered the comedy world together and apart.
EW rounded up the three stars/executive producers for a revealing, off-the-books interrogation.
‘Only Murders in the Building’ stars Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez.Peggy Sirota/Hulu
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: You know why you’re here and what you did.
You’ve made a promising and dangerous comedy
STEVE MARTIN:Comedy-drama?
What would you call it?
SELENA GOMEZ:I’d say dramedy.
MARTIN SHORT:Could beshtomedy, which is comedy with lots of shtick in it.
Or…shtragedy…
MARTIN:Marty, keep going!
Steve, as the mastermind of this operation, how did you come to co-createMurders?
MARTIN:I came to create theidea.
John Hoffman wrote the script.
I wrote the first three or four pages to [get] it off on the right foot.
There were three older actors there.
I said, “Gee, that is a really good idea.
And part of the joke is that every season there’s a murder.
It’s a little bit likeMurder She Wrote.
But I never did anything with it.
He really likes you.”
And I’ve always liked Wes Anderson.
SHORT:Well, you know what it was?
He expected you…
MARTIN:…to be funny?
SHORT:To be more upbeat.
[Imitates sad sack Martin] “It’s the beginning of winter.
That means a long time till spring.”
He said, “Get me the check and get out of this.”
GOMEZ:By the way,this[motions to them] is all I did for seven months.
[They laugh.]
So I go to this outdoor lunch.
I tell them the Wes Anderson story.
They said, “No, we’ll just have fun!”
We have a nice time.
I said, “You know, I do have this one idea,” and I pitched it.
And I could see their eyes go hmmm!, a little wider.
And then a year and a half later, we finished shooting.
It went very quickly.
Parton does, on Martin’s 2009 album,The Crow: New Songs for the Five-String Banjo.
One of the appealing and intriguing things about this series is its triumvirate of stars.
[They laugh.]
…and the other is a huge pop star.
How did it meet or subvert expectations?
It actually happened very organically.
But I was very, very nervous at first.
SHORT:Not remotely.
And now I feel more open to just saying whatever.
MARTIN:Well, there was a shift during shooting.
But I think you’re fantastic in the first episode.
[Points to own face] Yes.
[Points to Gomez’s face] Yes.
[Points to Short’s face] No.
GOMEZ:I was very intimidated.
They have taught me so much and make me laugh constantly.
They have a sense of humor that’s just classicI feel like it doesn’t exist anymore.
SHORT:Oh, that’s nice.
MARTIN:Do you wish it had been Ron Rifkin and Joel Grey?
Steve and Marty, what do you remember about meeting Selena?
MARTIN: I remember backstage in the makeup, thinking, “Oh!
We’re going to meet Selena!”
When you meet somebody, especially a pop star, you have no idea.
[To Gomez] Well, we really liked you on Zoom [in our first meeting].
We talked after, and [Short] said, “She is perfect.”
We were comfortable within hours, I’d say.
SHORT: Whatever you were feeling, you masked it perfectly.
You seemed totally friendly, lovely, open, in the moment, excitedyou carried nothing other than that.
We all just laughed and liked and trusted each other.
And you said, “I’ve been getting those since I was 7!”
GOMEZ: No, I said, “Disney can own my firstborn child.”
None of that."
And we go, “Oh, okay.”
Do we write her?"
[To Martin] And you say, “Maybe text.
Phone calls seem to upset them.”
GOMEZ: That sums it up.
GOMEZ: We share that bond of being lonely.
Our characters have their own story, but what brings them together is they’re lonely people.
What does this show aim to say about our true-crime obsession?
Charles talks about how these podcasts fill the holes in his life.
At one point, he lectures Oliver, “Every true crime story is actually true for someone.”
MARTIN:Well, I am a true crime obsessive.
The latest trend in true crime is to really get into the victims and who they are.
And I always go, “No, no.
I just want to know how they solved it.”
Because it’s too tragic if you look at it personally.
But the scientific solving of it to me is very interesting.
GOMEZ:It’s kind of like video games.
These kids I’m a kid!
they’re desensitized to what they’re doing.
So I guess it’s a weird balance, because sometimes I feel weird listening.
GOMEZ: It’s been around for a bit.
There’s a case that’s actually open…
MARTIN: You mean it’s a TV show?
GOMEZ: No, no, it’s just an event.
SHORT: Did you do this recently?
GOMEZ: No, this was before the show.
SHORT: You were into true crime evenbeforethis project?
GOMEZ:The First 48.
I grew up with…
MARTIN:First 48is really good.
I was intoForensic Files.
It’s not about the personality of the victim.
It’s from Australia, and it’s very good.
GOMEZ: My God.
[I’m listening to] these two girls…what’s their name?
MARTIN: Oh, I know who they are.Crime Junkie***?
**CrimeCon is an annual multiday event for true-crime fanatics, creators, and experts.
The first CrimeCon was held in Indianapolis in 2017.
Marty, did you also have interest in true-crime podcasts, or was this on-the-job education for you?
SHORT: No interest.
[Martin laughs.]
As a kid, I sure likedPerry Mason.
Sting doesn’t do a lot of comedies.
MARTIN: Yeah, I know!
I was holding the camera, trying to video him.
SHORT: He was phenomenal.
MARTIN: And he knew all his lines.
He played very, very straightand a little tough.
SHORT: You know what he did, which was great?
[In one episode] he sings a song that he makes up.
He’d go [imitates Sting singing], “Roxaaanne!”
GOMEZ: It was surreal being on set.
MARTIN:We’re smart.
GOMEZ: You are smart.
SHORT:[To Martin] Is your name Selena?
MARTIN:Well, I’m trying to help out.
It’s a hard question!
GOMEZ:It is a hard question.
SHORT:I can answer about Selena:Reallysmart.
MARTIN:Well, that’s an insult.
SHORT:No, it isn’t.
MARTIN:Yes, it is.
Because it means you thought she was going to be dumb.
[Gomez laughs]
SHORT:No, I didn’t.
Let me rephrase it.
Even more intelligent and fascinating than I thought she’d be.
SHORT:So you didn’t think she’d be professional?
You just don’t know, given that whole pop star… thing.
[Gomez laughs] I mean, I grew up with pop stars trashing hotel rooms.
GOMEZ:I didn’t know how humble they were.
They make me feel humbled.
SHORT:Oh, I have another thing for Selena!
GOMEZ:Oh, good grief.
SHORT:Way more humble than I thought she’d be.
[They laugh]
Which of you three would make the best investigator?
Because I’ve had the gift of social media, unfortunately.
MARTIN: Also, you’re willing to leave the house.
We’re too tired to leave the house.
SHORT: Don’t lump me in with your sore back!
Now that you’ve jelled as a trio, what’s your dream project?
MARTIN:Three Amigos!
GOMEZ: A dream would be to do some comedy sketches.
MARTIN: What’s the standard life for something like this?
Three, four years?
Some are six years.
[They laugh.]
MARTIN: I can’t think of anything more dreamful than this [show].
SHORT: A remake ofA Room With a View.
Obviously, she can play Helena Bonham Carter, and we play dueling Maggie Smith characters.
We may need to bring you in for further questioning, so don’t leave town.
MARTIN: My career?
[They laugh.]
Whew, got out of that one.
MARTIN: If she took it…
SHORT: If you’re 9.
GOMEZ: Well, I wasn’t 9!
SHORT: That’s a good mom… A version of this story appears in the September issue ofEntertainment Weekly, on newsstands Friday.
