Only Murders in the Building season 5: Release date speculation and latest news

So far, comedian Keegan-Michael Key, Oscar winner Christopher Waltz and Bridget Jones star Renée Zellweger have all been tapped for the upcoming fifth instalment, with details on their roles remaining under wraps for now.

The fourth season drew to a dramatic conclusion and wrapped up the mystery of Sazz’s murder – but, in true Only Murders fashion, it ended on quite the deadly cliffhanger with yet another body being discovered at the Arconia.

There are plenty of burning questions around the storyline and new characters, so it's a good thing that production on season 5 is officially under way.

The news was announced at the start of March, with a cheery photo of our main trio.

Led by Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez, the Emmy-winning series has gone from strength to strength since it began airing in 2021, and so has its cast.

Not only did Meryl Streep join in season 3, but this latest instalment has seen the likes of Eugene Levy, Zach Galifianakis, Eva Longoria, Richard Kind, Melissa McCarthy, Kumail Nanjiani and Molly Shannon all join the murderous ranks.

And now Téa Leoni (Madam Secretary) has joined the cast of season 5, according to Deadline, following a guest appearance as Sofia Caccimelio, the wife of Nicky 'The Neck' Caccimelio, in the show’s season 4 finale.

But who else will star in the new instalment and what will it be about? Read on to find out.

Only Murders in the Building release date speculation

Speaking in the season 5 announcement video, Martin questions the release date, asking "So, when would that be on?"

"It would be 2025," he adds, before Gomez continues: "We don't have the date. We've got to shoot it."

Based on the release pattern so far, we'd expect season 5 to arrive in August 2025.

Ever since season 1 began airing in August 2021, subsequent seasons have followed a year later.

We do know that season 5 will comprise of 10 episodes, which will likely be released weekly, but watch this space for more confirmed details as they come.

Series co-creator John Hoffman has been vocal about his plans to continue doing the show for as long as possible, previously telling Screenrant: "I really mean it. This is one of those shows [where] everyone involved in it is so happy doing it – and I know I speak for the trio and everyone else.

"When you have lightning in a bottle in this way, and then there's this magnetising force of incredible talent who say, 'Wow, that looks like fun. I would love to be a part of that.'"

Only Murders in the Building season 5 cast

Gomez, Short and Martin are all set to reprise the roles of murder-solving central trio Mabel Mora, Oliver Putnam and Charles Haden-Savage.

They'll also be joined by series regular Michael Cyril Creighton as Howard Morris, with some further casting additions now having been announced.

After the very starry heights of season 4, we can only imagine who else will sign up for the new instalment, but so far, it's been confirmed that Keegan-Michael Key, Christopher Waltz and Renée Zellweger will all be starring.

As for whether we'll be seeing more of Meryl Streep as Oliver's flame Loretta, we'll just have to wait and see. The same goes for Eva Longoria, Eugene Levy and Zach Galifianakis, who all starred in season 4 as the trio's film counterparts.

The confirmed cast list for Only Murders in the Building season 5 is as follows:

• Steve Martin as Charles-Haden Savage
• Martin Short as Oliver Putnam
• Selena Gomez as Mabel Mora
• Téa Leoni as Sofia Caccimelio
• Michael Cyril Creighton as Howard Morris
• Keegan-Michael Key as TBC
• Christopher Waltz as TBC
• Renée Zellweger as TBC

What could be the plot of Only Murders in the Building season 5?

In the final moments of season 4’s finale, Oliver, Mabel and Charles come across a bloodied Lester, the building’s doorman, setting him up as season 5’s victim.

We also see new character Sofia Caccimelio (Téa Leoni) approach Arconia’s trio asking for them to investigate her husband’s disappearance, and claiming it “has everything to do with this building".

Asked about how the writing of season 5 is going, and whether he already knows who’s responsible for killing Lester and ditching his body in the Arconia fountain.

Showrunner John Hoffman told Variety: "I know the killer. I know the story. We are now breaking the fourth episode of season 5, so we have a pretty good handle on it all. There is always a wish to look into a new world, and hopefully with a real New York bent. The show has always been about classic-meets-modern.

"Season 5 is shaping up within the microcosm of our building in New York, and modernisation, and grappling with that. The victim was a doorman, and that is a very rich lineage and heritage to New York City — what that job is, and the union around that job — and there’s a level of respect involved. Now we have to pay respect by finding out what exactly might have happened to Lester. The old-school nature of all of that piety that you still find in New York, matched up with sort of the modern."

Meaning, speaking about new character Sofia, Hoffman told the publication that she belongs to "a world" the show hasn’t tackled yet.

He teased: "I think she's the great tease at the end of the finale and a little bit of an intriguing bump forward. She's an extension of the little news report in Episode 9 that Mabel makes note of at the hospital. [Sofia] is the wife of the Dry Cleaning King of Brooklyn, and maybe a couple of dry cleaning outlets in Manhattan, as well, we may come to know.

"But beyond that, it’s a world opened up potentially that we haven’t talked about too much yet in New York, so she holds a lot of intrigue."

Alongside solving another murder, fans can also expect the new season to follow our leading trio of friends' personal lives, too. Will Mabel figure out what she wants to do in life? Will Charles manage to move on from the loss of Sazz? And will Oliver ever manage to direct another play again?

As for our other characters, we'll just have to wait and see what happens as it relates to Oliver's relationship with Loretta and whether or not the Only Murders in the Building film will make stars out of Mabel, Charles and Oliver.

Really, though, as series co-creator Hoffman said recently, the show is all about dealing with life and death. He told Variety: "Once you get over the hump of how many murders can happen in one building, you’re really stepping back and looking ultimately at the true original concept, which is three lonely people in New York City brought together by a common interest in true crime.

"Hopefully, we’ve tethered out our stories and hit reflections of things that we all recognise about life and death – and being that close to it and examining and investigating and following that, and then reflecting back. All of that feels very fertile always, so I’ll go as long as they’ll have us."

Is there an Only Murders in the Building season 5 trailer?

Not yet! We'll be sure to update this page as soon as it lands.

Seasons 1-4 of Only Murders in the Building are available to watch on Disney Plus. Sign up to Disney Plus for £7.99 a month or £79.90 for a year.

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