Everything We Know About 'Only Murders in the Building' Season 2

In fall 2021, Hulu dropped one of its most successful comedies to date with Only Murders in the Building. The show co-created by Steve Martin and John Hoffman (Looking, Grace and Frankie) follows the unlikely friendship of three lonely New Yorkers (played by Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez) who live in the same Upper West Side building and come together to create a podcast and solve a murder when another one of the neighbors winds up mysteriously dead. With elements of true crime, comedy, and some very sweet, wholesome chemistry among the leads, it found its way into many people's hearts (and made many jealous that they, too, can't solve mysteries with Charles, Mabel, and Oliver).

While Season 1 wrapped up its caper by figuring out who killed Tim Kono (Julian Cihi), it threw the ultimate cliffhanger at fans by revealing his death actually isn't the only murder in the building. Now, the trio's crotchety neighbor Bunny (Jayne Houdyshell) is dead, and Mabel appears to have blood on her hands—since she literally does, being the one who found the body. With another, even more shocking mystery in store, we're breaking down everything we know about Only Murders in the Building Season 2.

Charles, Mabel, and Oliver won't be packing up their podcasting equipment anytime soon. Before Season 1 had even ended, Hulu ordered a second season—an easy call considering how much critical acclaim the series generated and the fact that it became the streaming service's most-watched comedy ever "by a good measure," according to Hulu execs.

Of the renewal, Karey Burke, president of 20th Television (which produces the series), said, "The comedy this team delivered has been the obsession of every executive at this studio, and our friends at Hulu have treated it like the crown jewel that it is. And now, thanks to the incredible audience response, we are so happy to say there will be more murders in the building—which is great news for everyone, except perhaps the residents of the Arconia."

In March 2022, Hulu announced that Only Murders will already be back for more in Summer 2022, as Season 2 will premiere on Tuesday, June 28. Given that Season 1 just aired in fall 2021, we couldn't be more excited. It makes sense the show is coming back so soon, though, considering the stars confirmed they were back on set in November 2021 and filmed throughout winter 2022. Get ready for a very mysterious, caper-filled summer!

Hulu dropped the official full-length trailer just two weeks before the premiere date. As fans probably expected, it looks like a very adorable riot! The clip previews somebody framing "Olimabel" (Oliver's new nickname for the trio, the Charles part being silent) and going so far as leaving clues in their apartments, including the bloody murder weapon. Yikes! There's a masked stalker following everybody around, secret passageways, schemes of hiding evidence, a not-so-happy Detective Williams (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), and, if that wasn't exciting enough, a sneak peak at Shirley MacLaine in character, looking as glamorous as ever.

Before the full-length trailer dropped in June, Hulu had been releasing a handful of teasers throughout Spring 2022. The first of which dropped during the Oscars and shows our favorite podcasters as they're wrapped up in the murder investigation involving Bunny's death. With Oliver saying, "We've been told to keep quiet," followed by, "but we will not be going quietly," from Mabel, it shows—in addition to being suspects—they won't be putting up with somebody threatening them. The teaser also offers a reveal at Cara Delevingne's and Amy Schumer's new roles, so fans can get a good look at our latest potential suspects, er, new characters. 

If that wasn't enough witty banter and playful bickering for you, another teaser dropped in May. This clip picks up right where Season 1 left off, with the trio getting questioned in the slammer (by none other than new cast member Michael Rapaport) and stepping outside to a hoard of reporters. It goes on to show that evidence is seemingly getting planted in their apartments. It looks like there's more Arconia secrets than we could have ever expected, too. While the crew is on the hunt for whomever is framing them, they come across some wild secret tunnels in the walls. The tongue-in-cheek joke in the trailer of Charles saying, "We're getting the hang of this," and Oliver responding, "Absolutely, you can tell it's our second season" couldn't be more accurate.

According to Deadline, we're in for 10 more new episodes. That's no more and no fewer than the first installment, so we'll take it.

What would Only Murders be without the leading funny throuple? Of course, Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez will return as Charles-Haden Savage, Oliver Putnam, and Mabel Mora. Aside from them, it seems likely that Aaron Dominguez will reprise his role as Mabel's friend Oscar and so will Da'Vine Joy Randolph, who plays Detective Williams.

Showrunner John Hoffman confirmed to Elle that Tina Fey will be back as true-crime podcast mogul Cinda Canning, and even though Teddy (Nathan Lane) and Theo Dimas (James Caverly) are in trouble for killing Zoe (Olivia Reis) and blaming the murder on Oscar, they'll return as well.

As for Bunny, who wound up dead in the Season 1 finale, we might actually not have seen the last of her. She's definitely six feet under, but Hoffman alluded to Entertainment Weekly that she'll be back. He said that he told Jane Houdyshell, who portrays the cranky Upper West Sider, that "it doesn't mean [she's] not going to be in the show" now that she's a victim. Like Tim Kono, expect more than a few Bunny flashbacks to get to the bottom of her murder.

With an apartment building as sprawling as the Arconia, it seems as though we've only met a portion of the residents who live there. We'll likely meet even more concerned, nosy neighbors going forward, now that another person who lives down the hall from them has been killed.

The first official new character announcement came in December 2021. Deadline reported that actress/model Cara Delevingne (Carnival Row, Her Smell) is joining the cast as Alice, "a sophisticated art-world insider who becomes enmeshed in the mystery." She'll appear as a regular, so expect her to be a big part of Season 2—but as with everybody on the show, we're keeping our eyes on her!

Some other potential suspects are the iconic Shirley MacLaine and Amy Schumer. Short revealed in an interview that those two are confirmed to appear. It's not totally clear if their characters will be up to no good, as who they're playing hasn't been announced. They're sure to make for fun cameos, though.

Michael Rapaport is also a new addition. In February, it was announced that the actor will play Detective Kreps, an officer working alongside Da'Vine Joy Randolph's character and keeping his eyes on the podcasters. 

It's unclear if Delevigne's role as Alice or MacLaine and Schumer's characters are considered some of them, but you can count on meeting a handful of people who were part of Bunny's life. Hoffman told Elle, "There will be some new characters and new suspects and new people around the world of Bunny, and new people around the world of the building that will factor into the case around Bunny." Whether that means Bunny was hiding a world of criminal activity behind her door or was up to no good as a building board member is unclear, but as the trio looks into her death, they're sure to be introduced to some colorful characters.

At the end of the Season 1 finale, Mabel said exactly what was on everybody's mind when she said she felt like there were still a couple of "loose ends." To fans, the tongue-in-cheek comment was in reference to the opening of the series, which showed Mabel over a dead body in a tie-dye sweatshirt. While the mystery had been looming throughout the season, we finally found out who was killed at the end of the episode when Mabel went back down to her apartment to fetch more celebratory champagne and found Bunny oddly dressed in podcast merch and stabbed to death by a pair of knitting needles (or so it seems).

Being that she was in Mabel's apartment and Mabel was found hunched over her body, covered in blood, authorities consider her the prime suspect. Charles and Oliver, therefore, are seen as being in cahoots with her. Only Murders always has twists up its sleeve, though, so it seems unlikely that those three are involved—or that we've even met the killer yet. Since we'll learn more about Bunny's background going forward, we might find out the unsuspecting old lady is actually involved with some nefarious associates, or has pissed off neighbors other than the podcasters. If you want to start sleuthing yourself, John Hoffman told EW that the first questions to ask are whether Bunny was alone in Mabel's apartment and just how lethal knitting needles really are.

One theory that's been floating around is that Cinda Canning had something to do with it. Hoffman explained to EW that when he first pitched the series, his plan was to make the trio the suspects in another murder "and the subjects of a new podcast that could be coming out, done by their own mentor." Could Cinda be so desperate for another No. 1 pod that she orchestrated a crime and its cover-up herself? In this twisty, quirky world, anything's possible!

The question on everybody's mind in Season 1 was Who killed Tim Kono?, and now that question has turned into Who killed Bunny? The exploration of Bunny's death will obviously be the focus of Season 2, but with our beloved pals at the center of the investigation, we're in for a bigger installment that expands beyond the walls of the Arconia. The trio are said to be thrust into the spotlight even more. While they were already minor podcast celebrities, now they're the buzzy subjects of even bigger podcast luminary's latest. Mabel is supposedly going to be the center of attention even more than her older friends—likely because of how guilty she looks—so potentially we'll see her in the news and/or behind bars, while Charles and Oliver get to sleuthing.

While the show's scope might become wider, don't expect to stray too far from the Arconia. Rather, the show is supposed to reveal more about the establishment. Hoffman told Deadline the season is set to explore the building's history and the effect that not one but two resident murders has on its real-estate value. It might not be totally clear what's going on with Season 2 or how Canning's Only Murderers in the Building podcast will unfold, but it's sure to be intriguing and oddly delightful.

Want more Thrillist? Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, TikTok, and Snapchat.