Only Murders In The Building Season 4's Original Character Return Explained By Showrunner

Charles Seeing Sazz’s Ghost In Only Murders In The Building Season 4 Explained By Showrunner

Showrunner John Hoffman explains the return of an original character inOnly Murders in the Buildingseason 4. Returned late last month, the fourth season of Hulu’s mystery murder series follows the three friends and true-crime podcasters investigating the murder of Charles' stunt double Sazz, which occurred during season 3’s ending. InOnly Murders in the Buildingseason 4, episode 2, Charles is visited by he and Sazz’s former lover, Jan, who was responsible for killing Tim Kono in season 1 and sent to prison.

In an interview withThe Wrap,Hoffman explained Amy Ryan’s surprise return as Jan inOnly Murders in the Buildingseason 4, episode 2. Having broken out of prison using parkour, the showrunner says that Jan’s escape was inspired by the real-life manhunt for Pennsylvania prisoner Danelo Canevale one year ago. Hoffman also discussed how Jan ended up in Charles' closet and how she is a suspect moving forward. Read his full explanation below:

Martin Short, Steve Martin, and Selena Gomez as Oliver, Charles, and Mabel in Only Murders in the Building season 4 (2024)

We were right around the time that the writer’s room was [running] when there was an escape from prison, where the guy was parkouring up the walls, and he got out and there was a chase going on. I was like, “Well, escapes from prison happen but you have to be really adept. And Jan was dating a stunt double who probably knew a little bit about parkour.” So it felt like a perfect opportunity. I also love that she ends up in that closet because of the help she got from the podcast in Season 2, [revealing] those passageways.

We’ve established that Sazz was having an ongoing, interpersonal relationship with Jan in prison in the previous season. So if Sazz shows up the victim of something terrible, then there’s no way around not having Jan be a suspect in that now.

Only Murders in the Building Season 5 poster

How Jan Is Connected To Sazz’s Murder In Only Murders In The Building

Did Jan Kill Sazz?

InOnly Murders in the Buildingseason 3,it was established that Sazz was having a personal relationship with Jan in prison, so she is certainly a suspect in her murder, but whether she was directly involved is unclear. In season 4, episode 2, Jan emerges in Charles' closet, explaining that she escaped from prison using parkour skills taught by Sazz, along with some “psychosexual manipulation.” Jan showing up in Charles' closet is also a clever nod to the podcast’s discovery of the Arconia’s secret tunnels in season 2 and Charles subsequently visiting Jan in prison for help.

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Instead of coming to kill Charles, which she has spent “hours fantasizing” about, Jan expresses concern for Sazz, who had called her in distress while she was still in prison. However, their conversation is interrupted when Charles' phone dials 911 to report Sazz’s murder. Upon hearing the news, Jan confesses her love for Sazz, who suspectedthere might be another murderer in the Arconia targeting Charles, and she was investigating to find out who it was.

InOnly Murders in the Buildingseason 1,Jan killed Tim Kono because he ended their affair, so it’s very possible that she did the same thing to Sazz, or tried to do the same to Charles. Though Jan is certainly a suspect in Sazz’s murder, the show probably won’t end up repeating the same killer or storyline from the first season. While Jan’s return and her connections to Sazz’s murder add some intrigue early on, there should still be plenty more surprises in store forOnly Murders in the Buildingseason 4.