Including a few capers you might have missed.
Now that the third season of Only Murders in the Building has wrapped, we’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is that we’ll definitely be seeing more of our favorite amateur gumshoes, Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, who will be back for a fourth season of their Hulu dramedy. The bad news is who knows how long we’ll have to wait for the next installment.
To tide you over, we’ve compiled a roundup of hilarious murder-mystery (or murder-mystery adjacent) shows streaming now that Only Murders fans are sure to love.
7 Shows Like Only Murders in the Building
The Flight Attendant
After 12 seasons of The Big Bang Theory, Kaley Cuoco returned to the small screen with this comedy-thriller, which was released during that first pandemic winter (back when Max was still “HBO Max”). She plays Cassie, a messy, hard-drinking (you guessed it) flight attendant, who in season one takes a bender a bit too far during a short stay in Bangkok. The next morning she wakes up beside a dead body with no clue how she got there and spends the rest of the season trying to figure out what happened beside a fellow flight attendant played by the marvelous Rosie Perez (White Men Can’t Jump) and her friend and lawyer Annie (Zosia Mamet of Girls).
Lots of goofy sleuthing follows, but so do some surprisingly deft twists and some heart-pounding chase scenes. A second superb season (for which Cuoco received an Emmy nomination) was released in April 2022. All 16 episodes are streaming now on Max and are guaranteed to help fill that Only Murders-shaped hole in your heart.
Poker Face
Can’t get enough of amateur investigators? We’ve got just the show for you: Poker Face. Debuting earlier this year on Peacock, the show stars Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale, a drifter with a special talent: She always knows when someone’s lying. Charlie had used this superpower to cheat casinos, but after a grim turn, ends up on the run, applying her gift to help solve grisly murders in small towns across the country.
The show is a throwback to Columbo. Like the 1973 series, viewers see how the crime is committed at the beginning of each episode and follow Charlie as she unravels the case. This updated version was created by Rian Johnson (whose 2019 hit film Knives Out is among the most entertaining capers of the past few years). Like the film, Poker Face is at turns funny, deeply emotional, and smart — and Lyonne absolutely shines. You can stream all 10 episodes now.
Dead To Me
Christina Applegate and Linda Cardinelli star in this excellent three-season thriller. The two play grieving widows who form an unlikely friendship with a big, ugly secret at its center. Applegate plays Jen, whose husband was killed in a hit-and-run, while Cardinelli plays Judy, who claims her fiance died of a heart attack. For the lucky folks out there who haven’t yet seen this outstanding Netflix series, we won’t give away any more. Just trust us, you’re going to want to binge this one.
Bored to Death
At this point, some of you may be thinking, “Come on, I streamed all this last year.” Well, here’s one you may have missed. Bored to Death was released by HBO in 2009 and stars a trio of bumbling New York City gumshoes that rival the comedic brilliance of Martin, Short, and Gomez. That’s right: Jason Schwartzman (Rushmore), Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover), and Ted Danson join forces to solve some crimes in Bored to Death — and as you may have guessed, hilarity ensues.
The show succeeds at delivering that Only Murders-esque blend of zaniness and suspense that’ll make you wish the series wasn’t canceled after just three seasons. You can watch all 24 episodes now on Max.
Search Party
Speaking of hapless New York City sleuths, have you checked out Search Party? The show, which debuted in 2016 on TBS, centers on a group of self-absorbed and listless millennials who become engrossed in the disappearance of an old college classmate. Eventually, the four of them — Dory played by Alia Shawkat (Arrested Development); Portia, a narcissistic actor played by Meredith Hagner; Drew, Dory’s often pathetic boyfriend played by John Reynolds; and Elliott, the show’s hilarious comic relief played by John Early — get in a little too deep.
Over five seasons, things get weird — in a good way, we promise — and it makes for some insanely funny TV. Check out all 50 episodes now on Max.
Russian Doll
If you haven’t already guessed it, we love Natasha Lyonne here at Katie Couric Media, so we just had to include her other dark comedy on this list. Here’s the Netflix show’s compelling premise: Lyonne (again a big-haired, fast-talking dynamo) plays Nadia, who’s celebrating her 36th birthday with booze and other questionable stimulants when she’s hit by a car…and dies. But she’s somehow resurrected and returned to her party — only to die again later that night and again brought back to life, ad nauseam.
Over the first season’s eight episodes, Nadia uncovers the mystery behind her Groundhog Day doom loop and returns for a second season to unravel another (equally arresting) time-hop dilemma. If you haven’t already, you’ll want to check this show out now on Netflix.
Based on a True Story
One more repeat actress on this list: Cuoco’s new show Based on a True Story has quite a bit in common with Only Murders in the Building, namely, the creation of a true crime podcast by a bunch of amateur sleuths. When a couple suspects their plumber is a serial killer, they start a podcast about it, but end up putting themselves in danger. We won’t say more, but the first season is currently streaming on Peacock.
