‘Only Murders in the Building’ New Characters Are Inspired by “Some Very Well-Known People” (Including This Real-Life Icon)

It’s almost time for another horrifying murder in Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, and it might have something to do with the wealthy trio that the series is yet to introduce.

Coming back with its season 5 in September, the show will see Charles, Oliver and Mabel meeting new people in the Arconia building, including the New York elite played by Christoph Waltz, Renée Zellweger and Logan Lerman in the next instalment.

There’s not so much to know yet about how exactly they will push the plot forward, but it seems like Only Murders in the Building is now heading into a more satirical direction — considering that those figures are inspired by pretty much real billionaires.

‘Only Murders in the Building’ Creator Says Viewers Might Recognize “Some Well-Known People” in New Characters

Even though Only Murders in the Building has been building a classic whodunnit storyline with characters quite typical for this kind of show, for creator John Hoffman the upcoming fifth season might have been the best time to go into uncharted territory of roasting the New York high society, though he isn’t ready to drop the exact names yet.

“Unfortunately, many of those billionaires are litigious, so I'm also nervous to hit too close to home”, Hoffman joked in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, adding that it’s not only one type of billionaires that the series will be exploring.

That said, modern wealthy people have drawn the public’s attention to their personas for so many reasons, which is why the series chose to centre on several of those.

“There are some well-known people who are interested in longevity [of human life]. There's some well-known people who are interested in design and boutique hotels in Manhattan, and tastemakers that have risen above the fold. And then the others are the sort of extended family of longtime money — there's many examples of all of that”, Hoffman revealed.

Who Are the New Characters in ‘Only Murders in the Building’ Season 5?

The show’s upcoming new instalment is yet to delve into these newcomers’ psychology and the way they will affect the leading trio’s ongoing investigation of Lester’s murder.

But there’s a little sneak peek into who these people actually are.

Renée Zellweger portrays Camilla White, a billionaire who is passioned about design and who is partially inspired by Martha Stewart.

“Martha Stewart bought an apartment in the actual Belnord [building], where we [film] our Arconia on the Upper West Side, last year. So she was a tiny bit of inspiration that way, and I hope she gets the joke of the fun of it, because Camila White is a very different person in many ways”, Hoffman admitted.

Apart from that, Christoph Waltz is about to show up on the screen as Bash Steeg, a tech billionaire who seeks ways to, well, make himself literally immortal.

Logan Lerman will star as Jay Pflug, a nepo baby from a “very, very wealthy, wealthy, wealthy family, well-known in New York”.

Only Murders in the Building’s season 5 is premiering on Hulu on September 9.