As a seasoned movie enthusiast who has spent countless hours traversing the vast landscapes of Hollywood’s iconic studios, I must say that the latest twist in “Only Murders in the Building” has left me utterly intrigued and amused. The decision to have Paramount Pictures produce the fictional movie within the show is a masterstroke of creative storytelling, one that I, as a fan, can truly appreciate.
In the television series “Only Murders in the Building” on Hulu, the characters Charles (portrayed by Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short), and Mabel (played by Selena Gomez) have embarked on another installment of their podcast for its fourth season. Interestingly, this season’s podcast is also being adapted into a film, which will be produced by Paramount Pictures. However, this movie seems to revolve around the events from the first season of their podcast, which contradicts the fact that Hulu/20th Television, a Disney production company, is responsible for producing the comedy series.
Why is it that a television series produced by 20th Television is now having its fictional movie produced by Paramount, given the extensive publicity and promotional efforts needed for such an undertaking? Let’s delve into it.
Only Murders in the Building’s Fictional Movie Showcases Paramount’s Lot
In the fourth season of “Only Murders in the Building”, contrary to what seemed likely from the end of Season 3, the trio doesn’t discover Sazz Pataki (Jane Lynch) dead on Charles’ floor. Instead, when they visit his apartment, Sazz’s body is missing and they chat about ordinary subjects while relaxing in the kitchen where Sazz’s body had been. One topic that comes up during their conversation is a movie at Paramount.
Charles and Oliver are particularly thrilled about the idea of a movie, as it presents them with a chance to travel to Hollywood and engage with studio executives. The series notably highlights Paramount New York’s backlot, where they witness a scene being filmed for an upcoming Godzilla movie before strolling through it. Moreover, they encounter a fountain by the iconic main gate bearing the name “Paramount.” To add to that, in actuality, Paramount was the location for the Season 4 premiere of the show and hosted the screening party on its New York Street, as reported by Deadline.
In this instance, the promotion is primarily associated with Hulu and 20th Television, both subsidiaries of Disney. Though 20th Television was previously known as 20th Century Fox Television, it’s now under Disney ownership, having dropped “Fox” (and “Century”) from its name. So while Disney or even Fox have ties to the show “Only Murders in the Building,” Paramount has not been involved… until recently.
Only Murders in the Building’s Movie Within the Show Is at Paramount for Creative Reasons
As reported by Deadline, it was due to a convenient arrangement that Paramount ended up producing the fictional film featured in “Only Murders in the Building”. Although Disney owns its own studio and leases parts of the Fox lot which includes a New York street, the writers’ room for “Only Murders in the Building” is situated on the Paramount lot. This was because it was also where Dan Fogelman’s previous writers’ room for the show “This Is Us” was based. As they brainstormed ideas for the fourth season of “Only Murders in the Building”, the writers often found themselves coming up with a plot about Paramount trying to create a movie adaptation of a podcast.
The concept successfully found its place in Disney’s scripts, and fortunately for the writers of Only Murders in the Building, Disney didn’t impose any difficulties concerning their preferred film studio. Unlike most studios that typically produce movies-within-movies or shows at their own production facilities, Disney’s partner label, 20th Television, surprisingly reached out to Paramount to explore potential shooting locations.
Once given the go-ahead, executive producer and showrunner John Hoffman took charge of the creative decisions, choosing to establish the introductory scene for the fictional movie on the Paramount lot – one of Hollywood’s oldest. Given its striking landmarks, it was too tempting not to take advantage of the opportunity to film there.
How Only Murders in the Building Will Continue Its Movie Storyline
After Charles, Oliver, and Mabel finished their visit to the Paramount set, they headed back to New York City. Whether or not they plan to return to the lot remains uncertain. But seeing as the movie is now set in New York and production for the series has shifted to the Arconia, it’s likely that some filming will take place there.
As a devoted fan, I can’t help but ponder more deeply about the connection between Sazz’s tragic demise and this season’s film narrative on the set of Only Murders in the Building. Initially, it seemed like two different stories, but as the plot thickens, I suspect someone from the movie production might have taken Sazz’s life, possibly under the mistaken identity of Charles. Regardless, I’m confident that our brilliant trio of detectives will expose her killer and deliver another masterful season of the podcast. However, whether or not the film gets made is a tale yet to be told.
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2024-10-08 04:01