‘Only Murders in the Building’ Knew Paparazzi Would Spoil Selena Gomez’s Wedding Dress Reveal

Note: This story contains spoilers from “Only Murders in the Building” Season 3, Episode 9.

After pictures of Selena Gomez in a wedding dress went viral on social media in March, “Only Murders in the Building” fans started speculating how it could fit into the Hulu comedy’s plot for Season 3.

Tuesday’s new episode answered that question, as Mabel donned Joy’s (Andrea Martin) mother’s wedding dress, left behind in Charles’ (Steve Martin) apartment, while the trio raced to a courthouse to clear Loretta Durkin’s (Meryl Streep) name after finding Donna DeMeo (Linda Edmond) to be the latest suspect in Ben Glenroy’s (Paul Rudd) murder.

Showrunner John Hoffman told TheWrap, in an interview conducted in accordance with WGA guidance and facilitated through his personal publicist, that the idea for the wedding dress came later in the planning for Season 3 and that filming the trio outside of New York City’s Belnord apartment complex was added at the last minute.

“It was only a few weeks before and then it all sort of unfolded like, ‘Whoa, that’s going to be a day and the paparazzi are going to get ahead of it.’ So we had to come to terms with [that] and thought ‘Well… here’s a big clue as to where we’re going in this season,’ ” Hoffman said. “That felt OK to me because one of the discussions that we have in the writers room is ‘Go home tonight. Think about what trailer moments you want to see this season…’ and one of the moments was Selena Gomez in a wedding dress. And I immediately thought that’s an exciting image.”

As for the impact on Season 3’s narrative, Hoffman described the wedding attire as a “coup de grâce” moment that allowed the trio to get to the courthouse on time, while also being a perfect way for Mabel to get her 30th birthday wish — to solve murders with Charles and Oliver. It also gave the writers the “slam dunk” idea to toss in a “Father of the Bride” reference.

He emphasized that the show planned to film additional footage of Gomez in the wedding dress, but noted that the Hulu comedy’s third season was already a massive undertaking production-wise.

“There was a moment we had on our schedule for a beat or two extra of her in that wedding gown, getting through crowds and upstairs of a courthouse on the exterior that was a little more grand in our wishes and dreams. But as is the nature of production, a lot of times it’s either time or money… but I was still very thrilled with our fabulous editor Peggy [Tachdjian] and everyone else putting together this sweep with that dress; and Dana Covarrubias finding the perfect wedding dress that Selena Gomez felt beautiful in… and Go, I love those paparazzi on that day because they took some stunners of her… I thought ‘Well, that’s a gift to get that out to the world and have people looking and sharing that picture.’ “

In addition to finally connecting the dots on the wedding attire, Episode 9, titled “Thirty,” revealed how Ben Glenroy was poisoned and who he was talking to in his dressing room before his collapse on stage. It turned out to be his guilty pleasure all along — a Schmakary’s cookie.

The idea came from writer Sas Goldberg, who is friends with the owners of Schmakary’s.

“Anyone who’s worked on a Broadway show knows those cookies are there and they’re haunting you throughout the day and they’re unbelievable,” Hoffman said. “So with that in mind, we always look for a weakness or a sense of what is this thing that could make one of our victims or main characters crumble.”

He noted that the cookie provided an opportunity as a “vessel of poisoning that felt different.”

“Also the simple ridiculousness of it really attracted me, as we teased and then set up this idea of his almost sexual connection to a cookie,” Hoffman added. “So that feeling of that temptress he can’t get away from sits in a bit of well constructed sugar and flour and [that] can undo him in a way that is rough all felt right.”

Hoffman praised writer Elaine Coe and director Cherien Dabis for taking on the challenge of executing the penultimate episode, which had to be entertaining, different from previous seasons, bring the central trio back together and lay out the timeline of Glenroy’s murder.

“We knew we wanted to get there in various ways — mainly through the telling of the mystery story — but also the deepening of Ben Glenroy’s character and understanding what really was going on with him: the damage, the regrets, the attempts at reach out that he makes, the sweetness of Ben. And then that really messed up night that he had that just went nuts,” he added.

When asked about the upcoming season finale, airing Tuesday, Oct. 3, Hoffman remained tight-lipped but teased that there “may be twists yet to come on certain realities of what happened.”

“I think there’s always going to be some more twists coming,” he continued. Hopefully fulfilling, big moments that people are hoping to see and some good shockers.”

“Only Murders in the Building” is created and written by Hoffman and Steve Martin. The pair executive produces the series with Short, Gomez, “This Is Us” creator Dan Fogelman and Jess Rosenthal. The series is produced by 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios.

New episodes of “Only Murders in the Building” stream Tuesdays on Hulu.

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