Once Upon a Time in the West

"Once Upon a Time in the West"
Season	4
Episode	1
Director	John Hoffman
Writer	John Hoffman & Joshua Allen Griffith
Editor	Shelly Westerman
Original air date	August 27, 2024
Episode chronology
← Previous	"Opening Night"
Next →	"Gates of Heaven"

"Once Upon a Time in the West" is the first episode of the fourth season of Only Murders in the Building, starring Steve Martin, Selena Gomez and Martin Short. It originally aired on August 27, 2024.

Short Summary

Charles, Oliver & Mabel are whisked to Los Angeles where a legendary film studio intends to adapt their podcast. However, Hollywood's glitz is overshadowed by a stunning clue about Charles' stunt double & friend Sazz Pataki.

Full Summary

Charles records a podcast about Ben Glenroy, ending the season of Only Murders in the Building. As he reads the last line, the power goes out. It quickly comes back on, and Charles notes that it's been a while since the last power surge. Charles asks if he should re-record the last speech. Mabel says they're ready to record again. Oliver cues him and Charles picks up the speech exactly where he left off, mid-word. He tells Mabel she can splice it together, and she sarcastically says she'll get the splicer. Charles invites Mabel and Oliver to his place for a nightcap. Oliver likes sentimental moments, especially if the liquor is good, while Mabel doesn't like those moments, but does like liquor.

As they get onto the elevator, Charles says he's been saving the Malbec and finds it weird that Sazz never came back with it. Mabel wonders what happened to Sazz. Charles says it's typical for Sazz to be there one minute and gone the next. Mabel asks if Charles and Oliver say the email from Bev Melon about their podcast. They make jokes about her name. As they exit the elevator, Mabel asks what's next for them, podcast-wise. She remembers Charles mentioning a cold case. Oliver says if it's cold, it's not interesting. They need a fresh body, right there they are or close to it. Charles says they've been lucky with people dying in their building. But that's the flaw in their business model. Charles finds the Malbec on the counter and guesses that Sazz never made it up to his place. Charles uses a motorized bottle opener to open it. Then he accidentally sends the cork flying. Mabel goes to get it and frets over the spots staining the carpet. She sees something on the handle of Charles' oven and pauses, then goes back to Oliver and Charles, who think a break might be good because it's always a good thing when no one gets murdered. Oliver wants them to say who they hoped it would be if someone had to get murdered. Charles and Mabel both say Oliver.

Charles sleeps through a movie. He wakes up and checks his phone to see his texts to Sazz have gone unanswered.

In his kitchen, Charles boils water in a kettle. He hears Oliver frantically knocking on the door. When he opens the door, Oliver says the show is closing. Mabel comes in behind Oliver, wearing his "least offensive" robe. She spent the night at his place because she's still homeless. Oliver continues that Donna and Cliff had pulled their funding due to their legal fees. Charles asks what about the great reviews? Oliver reminds him they only had one great review: Maxine's. The rest were middling at best. Last night, Oliver was the king of Broadway, and now he's in the toilet. He wants to drop dead. Plus, he shared the news with Loretta, and she's going to leave for LA to go film the show she booked. Mabel reminds Oliver that he told Loretta to take the show job. He says he didn't think she'd do it. He dramatically sinks to the floor, saying this is the end. Charles says it could be worse. He's been hearing a whistling sound all morning. He's worried it's a brain tumor. Howard comes in just then and introduces them to Gravey, his new dog. He just adopted her. The shelter won't let him adopt any more cats, so he got Gravey instead. Gravey and Sevelyn are already sleeping in the same bed. He tells Mabel that Gravey's retired. She was a working dog. Mabel asks what she did, but they didn't tell Howard. But it made him think they should do a podcast about animals and their jobs. She's shocked that he's pitching her because she needs a job and a place to live. Gravey starts barking. Howard says he's never seen her like this and says he's going to take her for a walk. He asks Mabel to think about the podcast. She says she won't. Mabel has another email from Bev Melon. Charles has one, too, so Mabel wonders if it's real. Oliver asks what they're talking about. Charles says it looks real. Oliver asks again what they're talking about, and Mabel says they want to make a movie about the podcast. "They" is Paramount Studios. They want to fly them to LA for a meeting. Oliver is re-invigorated, but Charles doesn't think he can go because he's worried about Sazz. She had something sensitive to discuss with him at the party, and he keeps hearing a whistling sound. Sazz is a whistler. Just then, Charles gets a text from Sazz. It says she had to go to LA to cover Scott Bakula. Oliver says the best coast is calling them.

Some kids open a fire hydrant and celebrate. A man calls for a taxi. A vendor sells hot dogs. A woman calls to Anthony from a fire escape, saying his grandpa needs help. Anthony says he's already late. A young couple walks together, talking about how much they love New York City. A director calls for them to look up, then calls cut. He tells the young couple they need to look up at the sky and pretend they see Godzilla. Behind them, Mabel, Charles, and Oliver look at the set. Oliver doesn't want them to get their hopes up about the meeting. Bev Melon probably got it dropped on her five minutes ago. Charles agrees and says Mabel should let the two of them take the lead in the meeting.

Everyone in the room applauds as Charles, Mabel, and Oliver enter. Bev Melon introduces herself, followed by Monica Bernstein-D'Angelo, the VP of Marketing; Todd Shettinger, EVP International; and Sal Snyder-Bernsdorf, Prez of Social. Bev wants to start talking movies.

Charles says the project seems further along than they thought. Bev says when she sees a marketable IP getting circled by rival studios, she goes in hard, and she always finishes first. Plus, they landed a wonderful directing team. She presents the Brothers: Tawny Brothers and Trina Brothers. Mel says they're identical twins, which is neat. They read the script that Marshall P. Pope wrote. Marshall says he just tried to get them all right. Bev says they're so distinctive: Oliver, whom they want to strangle and cuddle at the same time; Charles, everyone's un-fun uncle; and Mabel, the traumatized, homeless, jobless millennial. It's box office gold. The algorithm agrees, as long as they get it out before Christmas. They have a soft green light, and they'd like to harden it up today. Mabel is surprised to learn they have a cast already. Bev says they'll get that later at the party they're throwing for the trio. First, she needs them to hop on board. Contracts are placed in front of them as Bev says she wants to start shooting in three weeks and their life rights are the only thing standing in the way of that. Charles tries to be slick, saying the project can't go forward without them. He writes a number on a piece of paper and slides it over to Bev with difficulty. She looks at the paper and sees that he just wrote 4. He stumbles over his words as he tries to explain himself. Bev says whatever the number, they'll make it work. Mabel asks to be excused, saying she needs a moment.

Charles and Oliver find Mabel on a bench outside. She tells them she's a little overwhelmed. Oliver says this lot can do that. He points out a spot where he once met Robert Evans. Mabel doesn't like how they described her in that meeting. It's not completely inaccurate, but that's not the person she wants to be forever. Charles relates because Bev called him un-fun. He tries to get them to say he's fun, and they reluctantly agree. Mabel's not saying no, but she needs to think about it first. Charles says whatever she decides is fine. Oliver reminds Mabel about the party. Loretta's going to come, too. He tells Mabel it's no pressure, but he needs this. Charles says he invited Sazz to the party, but she's back to not responding to him. Usually, she replies right away. A honking limo approaches, and Charles says it's his old driver, Sidney. He's there to give them a tour of Hollywood. Mabel says if Charles is worried about Sazz, they can skip the tour and just go by her place. Charles says her apartment complex belongs on a Hollywood tour. Oliver takes not of Sidney's poor health and says fewer stops would be better for him anyway. Oliver does have one place he wants to go first.

Charles, Oliver, and Mabel push their heads out through the sunroof. Finally, they arrive at The Sunset Swan. It's legendary. He lived there during season one of Brazzos, then Sazz took over his lease. It's the kind of place that can only exist in Hollywood, where celebrities take short-term leases next to eccentrics who have lived there for decades. They get to Sazz's door, which has packages stacked outside it and mail sticking through the slot. Charles rings the bell and gets no answer. He looks through the mail slot, but sees nothing. Oliver says she might be away shooting on location with Scott Bakula. Charles tries to stop worrying so as to stop being un-fun. He tells them it's time to party.

Charles, Mabel, and Oliver enter the party, where they receive a round of applause. They turn and see Eugene Levy, Eva Longoria, and Zach Galifianakis, dressed as Charles, Mabel, and Oliver respectively, posing for photographs. Bev tells them that they are the three actors who have been cast to play them in the movie. Charles and Mabel immediately recognize their counterparts, but Oliver doesn't know who Zach Galifianakis is. Zach is offended and says he's out. Bev steps in and promises to greenlight his dream project. He proposes Erin Brockovich, but it's him. Bev says no. He also tries the same for Legally Blonde and Spider-Man, so she agrees to his first proposal. He says he's back in and takes Oliver to the side to talk. Bev leaves the others to get to know each other. She's also ready to talk whenever Mabel is.

Mabel is flattered that someone looked at her and thought of Eva Longoria to play her. She does wonder why they aged her up, though. Eva says they did a focus group that found the age gap between her and the two guys creepy. Eva says they're basically the same age anyway.

Zach says he has a risky take for playing Oliver. He asks what Oliver think about him playing movie Oliver as talented and successful.

Eugene tells Charles it's going to be an amazing project. He can't believe he's going to be playing Charles. Brazzos was huge in Canada. Eugene even dubbed the voice into French for Québec. He says Charles' famous line in French, but Charles is distracted with his worry about Sazz. Eugene immediately repeats what Charles said, word for word, matching his cadence. Eugene says no one does "a little worried" like Charles. Charles defends himself, saying that's not him. He's usually the fun guy. Eugene says at their age, no one's ever really completely fine. Everyone's got sepsis lately. Charles awkwardly excuses himself from the conversation.

Oliver can't understand why Mabel is delaying this. Loretta calls out and comes over to them. Oliver texted Loretta five times. She says she texted him twice, but it's also been such a craze. Oliver wants to know everything. Loretta loves the job and the people there. But tonight is about them. Who could have imagined a week ago they'd all be Hollywood-bound? Mabel excuses herself to get a drink. As she goes, Oliver tells Mabel if she has trouble deciding what she wants to remember that Oliver's life depends on it.

Mabel starts to order, but then Eva comes up beside her and orders tequila for both of them. Eva then asks about Mabel holding out on signing over her life rights. Mabel says she just needed some time to think about it. Eva understands because of how the script portrays her. Mabel doesn't even understand what she's done to become a character in a movie. Eva says when she was Mabel's age, a few years ago, she found herself at a crossroads. She was making great money acting, but she wanted to do more. She wanted to expand into so many other industries. Then she did that. She's not telling Mabel to sell her life rights, but if she does, she should ask for a ton of money and use it to build something.

Loretta tells Oliver she's sorry about Death Rattle Dazzle. Oliver is done with Broadway and says Hollywood has never let him down. Except when they removed his star from the Hollywood Walk of Fame because they said he couldn't just put it there.

Charles sees someone he thinks is Sazz at the party and follows them.

Loretta asks Oliver to come out to LA because the podcast is on hiatus and the musical is dead. Oliver hesitates, so she backtracks. He says he'd definitely consider it. He just feels like he's watching her take off. He just hopes he can keep up with her. Loretta says she's so in love with him. Oliver asks Loretta to give him some time to think about coming out to LA. It's a huge decision, but he's not against it. Loretta says they'll figure something out.

Mabel goes to Bev to talk. Marshall asks to observe their conversation for research purposes. Mabel knows Bev thought she could wow her with the presentation, and she'd just agree to whatever deal they put in front of her, but that's not how she works. Bev asks what it's going to take. Mabel hands Bev a piece of paper. Marshall curses when he sees what it says.

Charles calls out to Sazz, but the figure turns and it's actually Scott Bakula. He congratulates Charles. Charles asks how Joy is and learns she's doing well. Charles then asks if Scott has seen Sazz. Scott was going to ask the same thing. She was going to double for him on a pilot, but she never showed up. That's not like her.

Mabel goes to Oliver, who immediately jumps up and makes like he's going to jump over the railing. She holds up a bottle and three glasses. He's relieved and says he never doubted her for a second. They go to find Charles, but just then, he finds them and says he has some news, and it's not the fun kind.

Charles, Mabel, and Oliver go back to Sazz's apartment. Charles picks the lock and they go inside. They see a series of x-rays on the wall. It's all the bones she's broken. She's had multiple joints replaced. According to her, the best ones come from Bulgaria, so she got all hers done there. They hear glass shattering in another room, but Sazz doesn't respond to Charles calling for her. Mabel gets a text from Howard, asking if she's thought about the podcast he pitched. It also includes a picture of Gravey. Mabel says they can talk when she gets back to New York and says he spelled Gravy wrong. On Sazz's desk, they find a series of odd notes, some referring to Charles. Charles' phone rings. It's Lester, who says he got Charles' note about replacing his glass, but he couldn't get it done, so it'll have to wait until tomorrow. Charles asks about the note and Lester says he got it at the desk, saying Charles needed his kitchen window replaced. Something left a little hole in it. It's the cause of the whistling. Charles asks if it could be a bullet hole. Lester doesn't think so, but then looks again. Charles tells him not to touch the window. Just then, Howard texts Mabel back and says it's Gravey because she was a cadaver dog. Mabel remembers Gravey barking in Charles' apartment. They need to get back to New York.

Charles, Mabel, and Oliver enter Charles's apartment. They go to the window and see the hole. Mabel looks more closely at the oven handle. Charles texts Sazz's number, asking who it is because he knows it's not Sazz. Howard comes in with Gravey, who sniffs around, then leads them to the incinerator. There's a note above it saying not to use it, as it's out of order.

Charles, Mabel, and Oliver go down into the incinerator room. Charles opens the door to the incinerator and finds Bulgarian metal joints among the ashes. Charles gets a text back, saying it's not his friend.

Cast

Starring

• Steve Martin as Charles-Haden Savage
• Martin Short as Oliver Putnam
• Selena Gomez as Mabel Mora
• Michael Cyril Creighton as Howard Morris

Special Guest Star

• Meryl Streep as Loretta Durkin
• Zach Galifianakis as Zach Galifianakis
• Eugene Levy as Eugene Levy
• Eva Longoria as Eva Longoria

Guest starring

• Scott Bakula as Scott Bakula
• Catherine Cohen as Trina Brothers
• Teddy Coluca as Lester
• Jin Ha as Marshall P. Pope
• Molly Shannon as Bev Melon
• Siena Werber as Tawny Brothers

Co-starring

• Marc Bovino as Sal Snyder-Bernsdorf
• Danny Breslin as Young Guy
• Jennifer Castillo as Young Girl
• Timothy Durkin as Director
• Alan Heitz as Cart Vendor
• Kurt Maloney as Guy on Street
• Eric William Morris as Todd Shettinger
• Asher Straus as Anthony
• Shannon Weiss as Monica Bernstein-D'Angelo
• Jackie Zebrowski as Lady Out a Window

Notes and Trivia

General

• The home movies at the beginning of the episode are of the three leads.

Cultural references

• The episode's title is a reference to the 1968 film of the same name. Footage from the film was used in the episode.

Soundtrack

• "Times Square (1989)", performed by Hip Hop Hoodíos
  
• "Goin' to California", performed by Irene Kral
  

Media

Episode Stills

Photography by Eric McCandless for Hulu.

Behind the Scenes

Videos

Season 4 Opening Scene - Only Murders In The Building - Hulu

Charles Attempts to Negotiate - Only Murders in the Building - Hulu

See Also

A complete overview of this episode's crew can be found here.

References

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