Taylor Tomlinson Is Ready To Joke About Her Bipolar II. Mostly.
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Taylor Tomlinson. And this is my show after midnight. And this is my outfit today. Do you like it? Thank you. But no offense, there's only one opinion that matters. The only one I care about is this random guy on Reddit who's been ranking my outfits. Yep.

This is real. He uses a scale from elite to nah, which I think is the metric system. I'm not sure. I'd make fun of this, but this person clearly has watched every episode of the show, so I think I might be in love? Like, this is the only ranking I care about. Some late night hosts worry about ratings and ad sales. Not me. I wake up in a cold sweat. Like, is Reddit user 21puppets gonna think my blazer is mid-

Seems a little f***ed to do to the only woman in late night. That was my guest Taylor Tomlinson performing the opening monologue on CBS's After Midnight, which took the time slot vacated last year by the Late Late Show with James Corden. When Tomlinson took that slot, headlines described her as the youngest female late night host on network television.

Taylor got the stand-up bug when she was 16, performing at open mics in church basements and schools and coffee shops in Orange County, California, where she grew up. Her humor is self-deprecating and rapid-fire, and almost nothing seems to be off the table. Her topics range from the perils of dating on apps to finding out she has bipolar disorder.

Taylor has three stand-up specials on Netflix, Quarter Life Crisis, Look at You, and this year's special, Have It All. She'll soon be traveling the country performing stand-up with her Save Me Tour. Taylor Tomlinson, welcome to Fresh Air. Thank you so much for having me. So you've been doing your show on CBS for a few months now. Yes.

And I heard that Stephen Colbert gave you advice when you first started hosting. What did he say? Oh, gosh. I mean, Stephen is the executive producer on our show, so he's given me so much great advice. But some of the most helpful advice he gave me was sort of just to not expect myself to be perfect right away.

I think that really helped me set my expectations for myself and say, you're not going to be amazing right away and you don't need to be as flawless as you think you need to be. He's like, people are just going to be happy to see you and happy to hang out with you.

You know, like that's what I love about our show and late night shows in general. I think they're a real comfort watch for people. They're consistent. They're something that people watch either every night as they're going to sleep or like in the morning while they're getting ready or on their lunch break. And I love that our show gets to be something like that. I love being a part of something like that, a daily point of comfort for people.

Well, it definitely feels like you're gaining your stride. You're settling in the seat, even though there is no seat. You're standing up the whole time. Yes, exactly. And people describe this show as kind of like the jeopardy of dumb internet culture. How do you describe it? Oh, I think that's a good description. I mean, it has a lot of elements of so many of my favorite shows growing up. Like, I think there's

Yeah.

And, you know, you watch most late night shows now and they are playing games. They're just doing it with like one guest. So what I thought was like setting us apart is actually something everyone's doing now every night. So I think the late night space is changing.

changing and evolving across the board. And I think the internet has a lot to do with that. And so our show focusing on the internet specifically and the dumb trends and the funny little videos that go viral as opposed to like hard hitting news is maybe what sets us apart a bit.

you are being described as one of the voices of a generation. And that's because you're able to articulate the fear and anxiety of being a young adult right now. You can have us laugh to keep from crying, really. But I just wonder, like, how does that translate to the confidence we see on stage? I think one of your best friends has said in an old article that, you know,

They watched you turn into someone else on stage. So is this person on stage we see, is it like a persona, like Beyonce and Sasha Fierce? Is that what you do to kind of get yourself? Because you're kind of facing your worst fear every single night. That's true. I don't think it's a persona. I don't think it's a character. I think it's just the best version of me. You know, I think it's the sharpest, quickest, wittiest person

most confident version of myself. I just can't keep that up very long is maybe what it is. But I think when I started doing stand-up in high school, it felt like more of a persona, but it felt like the version of myself that I knew I could be and wanted to become, but wasn't yet. And I think over the years...

who I am offstage and who I am onstage have come together where I do feel that I am the same person everywhere. Maybe the energy levels are different, but I do feel that if you meet me on the street or after a show, you're not going to feel like, well, that wasn't who we know from her stand-up. Yeah, I would hope so. I mean, I have had friends say, like, oh, I thought you'd be...

you know, more outgoing or something. And I'm like, no, I'm really, I'm still not, I'm still not comfortable socially, I think. But I wish I was. I wish I had that. But you got to accept who you are. Yeah, it's one of the things that you talk about in your stand-up. You joke about the anxiety you feel. You joke about your mental health challenges in a way that normalizes it. Yeah.

I actually want to play a clip from your 2022 Netflix comedy special, Look at You. And in this clip I'm going to play, you talk about how you came to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder. I'm so glad I know that I'm bipolar now. I mean, I have the right meds. I got a mood ring. I'm handling it. But when I first found out it was a very tough pill to swallow and I've swallowed a lot of pills.

Because when you first find out something like that, you're like, oh man, am I going to tell anybody? Should I tell anybody? And if I do tell people, am I hot and or talented enough to be an inspiration?

Like if I have a thing and someone else has that thing and they find out I have it too Are they gonna feel good or bad with that information? Because when I got diagnosed they started listing names. They were like, you know who else is bipolar? Selena Gomez and I was like that does make me feel better She is very pretty Okay, I'll be bipolar

That was my guest, Taylor Tomlinson, in her 2022 Netflix comedy special, Look at You. Taylor, first of all, that's just funny. I was like, okay, she's pretty. Okay.

Also, there's this thing you say right before that where you actually talk about the process of finding out that you were bipolar. And one of the things was just through a cocktail of medications over time. And I thought that was really fascinating that that's one of the ways that you can be diagnosed. How long did it take for you to find out and find out that right combination? Yeah.

Oh, gosh. I mean, I think I tried so many antidepressants and they weren't working for me and I was having terrible side effects. So it was like years of that. It was years of like, OK, I'll try something and then it wouldn't go well. And I'd go, well, forget that. I'm just going to eat a lot of spinach and exercise and I'll be fine. And I can stay afloat as long as my partner doesn't leave me and nothing goes wrong. You know, like it was...

It was certainly a years-long process trying to find what worked for me. And then when I finally did find what worked for me, I sort of worked backwards from that and was like, oh, this makes sense. Is it maybe this? And look, there are so many mental health illnesses that have similar symptoms. I think there's probably more labels that could have been

put on my particular set of struggles. But as long as you find the right tools, the right medication, the right routine for you to feel better and feel stronger and get to a place where you can count on yourself, I don't think it really matters. And I had so much shame around

that diagnosis when I first got it. And I was embarrassed that I felt ashamed because I've never judged anybody else who had it. But when it's you, it's like somehow different, which is why I started writing jokes about it. How did you push yourself to say, I'm going to joke about it? Because you take so many parts of yourself and bring them on stage. How did you decide that, like, hey, I'm just going to let this out?

I remember my therapist said to me, maybe we don't talk about this on stage. And I was like, I've already done it.

Wait, by the time you told your therapist, you had already started talking about it? I think she knew before, but later on she had said, well, maybe that's why we don't talk about it on stage yet. And I was like, well, I didn't try something last week and it worked, so I'm probably going to start talking about it. Because once you write one joke and it hits and you really like the joke, you're like, well, it's got to go in the act.

And I'm so glad that I did because I got such amazing feedback from people who had been struggling with their mental health as well, not even just from like a bipolar 2 diagnosis like I got, like from a variety of things and how it made them feel seen and less alone. And that was so rewarding and amazing and comforting for me personally.

But when I filmed the special, I felt great about those jokes. And then in the months waiting for it to come out, I started panicking and was like, oh, no, I can't unshare any of this. And...

Over the years, I've gotten better about editing myself and deciding what is going to go in the act and what I'm just going to keep private. But it's a lot of trial and error. You know, like sometimes you don't know that you want to keep something private until you try it out on stage. And so you tell thousands of people and then go, well, I'm going to keep that private. Is it the reaction that like brings that awareness or how it feels? A combination of both, maybe. Yeah.

For me, I think it's how it feels. Because if something bombs, you're like, well, I just need to rework that. Like, I can write a joke about anything at this point. If it doesn't go well, I just need to rework it or find a different way into it. But the guiding light for me has been, even if something kills on stage...

do I feel good telling it every night or do I dread that bit coming up? Like I have done jokes about very personal things that I took out of the act because I was dreading getting to that part of the hour every night and

And I was like, ooh, that's probably a sign that I'm not ready to talk about this yet or I shouldn't be talking about this yet. I also run jokes by family members and friends before I do them because a joke is not worth destroying a relationship, in my opinion.

You know, the thing about you in this moment is that we are watching you grow on stage. You mentioned you recently turned 30. You started doing stand-up at 16. You really became popular a few years ago. And with that, though, I mean, there's so much growth and development that happens from 16 to 30, and there'll be so much more that happens from 30 on. I've actually heard some artists say that sometimes...

the edge in their work comes from the sadness or the depression or the anxiety. You're working out these things on the stage. You're also doing a lot of work, you know, in your life, going to a therapist, your medication. Has your comedy changed with your diagnosis, for instance, or the different things that you're doing therapeutically to basically heal yourself? I think finding the right combination of things

medication, talk therapy, that has made me a more confident, steady person. And I was always somebody who was driven by

by my emotions. I felt like I was getting dragged around by my own feelings all the time. And it was exhausting and painful. And when I finally got on the right medication, I'm on a mood stabilizer now, it was like, not right away, obviously, because you have to sort of find the right dosage slowly, but

I've just, I've had this moment many times in the last few years where I have sort of a flashback to where I was emotionally in my early 20s and think about how I feel now and how I'm able to count on myself and plan for things and not be worried that I'm going to fall apart.

And it's just, it's incredible. I mean, I'm still so grateful for it. I really do feel like a different person. And I mean, part of that is just growing up too. I mean, I think there's a little more awareness around taking care of myself and making sure I don't burn out and don't fall apart emotionally and physically.

Did you have to fall apart in order for that to become an awareness? Have you had that yet or were you able to? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I think so. I mean, I think the lowest I have ever been was the few months leading up to Quarter Life Crisis, my first Netflix special. I think the summer before that, I filmed it in November. And the summer before that was probably rock bottom for me. It's when I started seeing...

a psychiatrist because I just didn't know what else to do. And it's actually hard for me to watch it. Just not knowing, just not, I wasn't on any sort of medication because I had tried in the past and it didn't work. So I just gave up and I had a relationship end and was under an immense amount of pressure and felt like I wasn't sure if I could

live up to the opportunity that was getting an hour-long Netflix special. And it just, it was just a lot. It was, I was just not in a good place mentally. And it was a huge, huge struggle. And even watching clips of Quarter Life Crisis now, I see somebody who was sort of manic. And I know how much pain I was in at the time. And I know that I had a panic attack that morning. And

It makes me a little sad, but I also think the special's really good. So it's interesting because I do think that some of the hypomania that I experienced in my 20s helped me get to this place in my career where it just feels like rocket fuel when you're in that space. But also when you hit those depressive episodes, you take...

You know, it's like two steps forward, one step back type of thing. So I think it all evens out. But yeah, I really I do think I needed to hit rock bottom to commit to getting help and really figuring it out. Your mom died when you were eight. And there's just this joke in one of your specials where you say to the crowd, do you think I'd be this successful at my age if I had a mom who was alive?

Do you really believe that? Oh, yeah. That was something I said in therapy. I was having a heart therapy session and I sort of in the middle of venting in tears. I was just like, but, you know, I probably wouldn't be successful if my mom were alive. So maybe it all is fine. Right. And it was not funny in therapy, but it was funny on stage because I do kind of feel like that even now. I mean, yeah.

I'm not saying that everybody in comedy or any creative person has to come from this dark place and the only way you're funny is if you have a darkness about you. Like, I don't think that's true. But for me, that changed who I was and who I was going to become and it changed my sense of humor and it made me try really hard to...

prove myself in a way that I don't think I would have if she were still alive. Because after you lose a parent, you're still trying to impress them and you're still trying to be somebody that they would have liked and respected and loved and been proud of. And you're hoping other people who knew them tell you that. So I

I do think that a lot of me trying to become somebody of note creatively was due to that. I mean, there's a lot of things. There's a lot of factors, of course. But I think that was certainly a huge, huge one.

Our guest today is Taylor Tomlinson, comedian and late-night host of After Midnight on CBS and Paramount+. We'll be right back after a short break. I'm Tanya Mosley, and this is Fresh Air. This message comes from Apple Card. If you love iPhone, you'll love Apple Card. It comes with the privacy and security you expect from Apple. Plus, you earn up to 3% daily cash back on every purchase, which can automatically earn interest when you open a high-yield savings account through Apple Card. A

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I took a class in high school when I was 16. I took a class from a Christian comedian at a church. I think we worked off of Judy Carter's book. I think it's called like the stand-up comedy book or the stand-up comedy Bible. And it was really just like lists of things that made you angry, lists of things that made you excited, lists of things that made you sad. And I think it was just to get you thinking about what you had strong feelings about and

because that's going to be the easiest and most interesting thing for you to write about so I definitely think I still do that I think when I'm actively sitting down to write new material I do make lists of just topics I could see myself discussing in front of audiences for the next two years because I know I'm gonna have to sit with it for a while some of your first gigs um

We're the church circuit. What kinds of things would you joke about on the church circuit? And what is exactly the church circuit? Look, churches put on events. Churches put on comedy shows. The only difference is they do an altar call at the end. But it's a stand-up show. It's someone doing 45 minutes to an hour of stand-up with an opener. And some of these churches are like theaters. They're 1,000 people to 5,000 people, like theaters.

But yeah, most people are like, you were performing in churches? Is that even a thing? And I just fell into it because I was, you know, a church kid. Like, that's how I got into it. It's not a cool story. But I think a lot of my jokes were...

about how young I was because I felt guilty making adults sit through a child talking for that long and watching a child try to get good at something. Like, I wanted to make them feel comfortable and call it out right away. I can imagine they're a pretty supportive audience, though. They were. Yeah, church audiences are very supportive as long as you don't say anything dark, edgy, or blue. Yeah.

So you were talking, you were joking about being young. Do you remember some of your first jokes? I know I used to open with a joke about how I know I'm a lot younger than many of you. Like when I watched Titanic, I was crying, not because Jack died, but because Leonardo DiCaprio didn't look like that anymore. It's like that was my opening joke for a long time.

Did you have comics that you were looking up to or that you'd watch and you'd think, like, they're so good or that joke is so good? Any folks you idolized? Oh, yeah. I mean, there were so many that I idolized and thought were so good. I mean, Brian Regan was, like, huge in my house because he was clean and one of the greatest of all time. And I got to open for him a couple times in my early 20s, and he's, like, just as classy and cool and hilarious and kind offstage as...

So that was like very formative for me, I think, as far as being able to see somebody with the career I wanted and how nice he was to other people. And like, you know, Marc Maron having a podcast where he just talked to other comedians about how they became comedians was huge. I mean, obviously now it's grown and evolved where it's not just comedians, it's

all kinds of people, directors, actors, politicians, whoever. But at the time, he was just talking to comedians about how they did it. And I don't know how I would have learned how to come up in the clubs or do open mics or how to feature or anything like that without that podcast. I really, really don't. Wow, you just listened to the podcast. Yeah, I couldn't. I remember when I found out, I couldn't believe it was free. Like, I couldn't believe podcasts were free when I found out what a podcast was. Because it was just this...

It was like a course. It was like a course on how to become a comedian. And I'm like, how did people outside of major cities figure this out before something like this? I want to talk a little bit about your family, your

So many folks who knew your mom have basically taught you about her because she died when you were eight. I'm really moved by you saying you're hoping that those who knew her actually see her in you and are proud of you too. As you get older, do you see yourself in her?

I don't know. I think you're right that I do rely on other people's accounts of her because there's only so much you remember when you lose somebody at eight years old.

So when people do give me those compliments, it means a lot to me. Like my aunt has said to me, like, oh, your expressions on stage will remind me of her. Like she and my grandma will say like, oh, we saw you make this face. And we're like, oh my gosh, that looks like Angela. And that means so much to me. And growing up, like I wanted to be a writer before I wanted to be a comedian. And they would say, your mom was such a great writer. And

There's so many ways I'm not like her. Like, she was an extrovert. She was very bubbly. She was very charismatic. She was gorgeous. Like, she was so many things that I wasn't and am not. I can pretend for a little bit, but I'm not one of those people who's just exuding light, and I think she was, and...

again, like so beautiful, like just, just not, I don't see myself in her in a lot of ways. Like I, I don't think I shine as brightly as she does. And I, in a weird way, feel like my becoming a comedian and a professionally creative person and a writer is like my way of honoring the, the,

potential that was wasted by the universe taking her. You've said you were afraid you were going to die at 34. Do you still have that fear? I actually don't. I think therapy helped a lot with that. And the last couple years, I've sort of felt that fear melt away because it is irrational. It makes sense, but it is irrational.

So that's another place that I see growth in myself mental health wise is I don't feel this like deep belief that I'm also going to be taken from this world in a few years.

If you're just joining us, I'm speaking with stand-up comedian Taylor Tomlinson. She's the host of the late night show After Midnight, which airs on CBS with streaming on Paramount+. Tomlinson will travel the country this fall as part of her stand-up Save Me Tour. We'll be right back after a short break. This is Fresh Air.

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Make an impact on your child's learning. Get IXL now. And NPR listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ixl.com slash NPR. I think you described it as like you suffer from eldest child syndrome. So you're like the eldest of four. Mm-hmm.

And you grew up Southern California, as we mentioned, very religious. The church experience changed for you when your mother died. You describe it as being fun, and then it wasn't. Can you say more about that? I think it just rocked my world. I think it just went against what I had been told. I had been told, if you believe and pray and

stay, you know, faithful, God will answer your prayers. And we had so many people praying for her and she believed she was going to get better. And so to watch your mom die of cancer, even while everybody gathers around her and lays hands on her and supports her and prays for her, and then for them to turn around and go, well, God did heal her. He just healed her in a different way.

She is healed. She's healed in heaven. And I was like, whoa, okay. The rewrite on that is crazy. Like, it made me question everything. And slowly over the next 10 years...

I felt like I was struggling to stay in it the whole time I was growing up. And I just felt like I was a bad Christian because I didn't, in my heart, agree with everything. The idea that we would have figured out

exactly who or what created us and what's going to happen when we die. Like, I just can't even imagine feeling that way. Like, I just have no idea what happens and I don't know how any of us would figure it out. Not that I'm against the idea that there might be a God or something more. Like, I'm not at all. I think that's just as likely that there's nothing. But I really struggled with

Like we have this book, we have this manual and everything written in it is what we believe and absolutely true. And so, yeah, I just sort of as I got out of school and started doing stand up and stand up is, you know, you're hanging out with people of all ages from all walks of life, like coming up in comedy clubs and everything. And it really broke me out of the sheltered childhood I was coming from.

It's kind of like you went from one, you know, one community to another community, like the community of comedy. And I'm just kind of curious, though, if there was ever any bouts of loneliness, because I sort of know what you mean. I've come from a religious family, too. And one of the things about falling out of love with religion that many people I hear say they didn't anticipate was loneliness.

the loneliness because so much of religion is about community. You've got your youth groups. You've got, you know, all of the folks that rallied around you and your family when your mother passed away. Did you ever go through that breakup process of loneliness, just being out in the world without a community?

Absolutely. I mean, I think that's what's so beautiful about religion is it can provide such comfort and such beautiful community when done the right way, when it's not being used as a fear tactic or a way to control people. But yeah, I was so afraid to admit that I didn't identify as a Christian anymore because I thought I was going to lose faith.

my family. Like, I thought it was going to separate me from them forever. And it hasn't, you know, for the most part. And it's been such a relief to not lose those people. And like, my mom was really religious. Like, that was very important to her. And it feels like letting her down in a way. It feels like letting down that entire side of my family. And I...

But I know that they don't love me any less or accept me any less. But I do still wish that I fit into that mold because it would be easier. And I do look at, like, my cousins who are all such brilliant, smart, cool, successful, amazing people and still in the church. And I do feel jealous sometimes. Yeah.

You talk quite a bit about your siblings. There are four of you. And something really interesting that you talk about in your latest stand-up is how you came out as queer. How did you come to that realization? And your siblings also identify as queer. Yeah, well, that's part of the reason I think I had so much resentment towards my religious upbringing is like, forget identifying as queer.

queer, like you yourself being gay, even if you believed in gay marriage, you were like not right with God, you know, like I, you know, I think when I was in high school and I had those feelings, it was just something you kept to yourself or squashed.

Because it just wasn't an option, you know, in the same way like not being a Christian wasn't an option because you just lose everybody you cared about if that was true of you. And then again, I think over the years, like, you know, being bisexual comes with its own fears and insecurities and worries about judgment and being wrong and everything.

being accused of, like, just wanting attention. So I was, like, very scared to come out for those reasons. But I think watching my younger siblings come out over the years was very inspiring to me and really did sort of pave the way for me, funnily enough, as their older sibling to do that, I think. Like, I think them...

validating me helped me feel more comfortable with it. You talk about this in Have It All. You talk about the beauty of your relationships with your siblings just by virtue of you talking about them in the context of these funny scenarios that you bring up. And in one of them, you also talk about how hard it is to date straight men. And

This is in the context of one of your siblings who's talking about how amazing their relationship is. Let's listen. Do you know how hard it is to continue dating straight men when you are surrounded by three queer relationships up close? Queer relationships are the most beautiful, thoughtful, creative things I've ever seen in my life. My sister and her partner are

romance novel. Every time I talk to them, I'm like, hey, I know you had a hard week at work. You doing okay? And she's like, yeah, I did. So to cheer me up, my partner got me my favorite snack in a limited edition flavor. They got me a little vial of sand from the beach we went to on our first date. And you know how I always wanted an Easy Bake Oven growing up and never got it? They found one on eBay. I'm like, oh my god, are they cheating on you? She's like, what? No, they just listen to me when I talk and remember things I say. And I'm like, what? No. Go through their phone.

stinks. Go through their phone. Trust me. She's like, okay, how are you and your boyfriend doing Taylor? I'm like, oh, we're good. My boyfriend bought me a hot dog because he wanted one. And I was there too. That was my guest comedian, Taylor Tomlinson from her latest comedy special, have it all on Netflix. I've been reflecting lately on how underrated Taylor

sibling relationships are like as part of just the discourse about family because you all really are the closest things to each other. You're the only four people who share this particular makeup of DNA, you know? Yeah, who know all of your secrets who were there for your entire childhood. I mean, people talk about the significance of their best friends from childhood in their lives and I have friends like that who have been in my life since I was 10 years old, but I

Nobody else has been there from the time I was two, you know? Like, my younger sibling Brynn is like my best friend in the world and knows me better than anybody. And I would probably feel that way about them even if we weren't related, I think. Like, I just like who they are so much and I respect who they are so much. And I feel...

so privileged to have that in my life because I don't think everyone has that with their siblings. I think there are plenty of siblings who, you know, they see each other on holidays and they check in every once in a while. So, yeah, I just I feel really, really grateful. Well, Taylor, this was a pleasure to talk with you. And I really thank you so much for this conversation. This was so nice. Thank you so much for having me. I really, really appreciate it.

Taylor Tomlinson is a comedian and host of the CBS Late Show After Midnight. She'll soon be traveling the country with her Save Me tour.

Coming up, TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new season of the comedy series Only Murders in the Building. This is Fresh Air. This message comes from our sponsor, Grainger. This is the story of The One. As a maintenance engineer, he hears things differently. To the untrained ear, everything on his shop floor might sound fine, but he can hear gears grinding or a belt slipping. So he steps in to fix the problem at hand before it gets out of hand. And he's a great guy.

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Only Murders in the Building, the comedy series that stars Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez as amateur crime-solving podcasters, has launched its fourth season on Hulu. Our TV critic David Bianculli has seen the seven new episodes available for review and says they're funnier and more loaded with delightful guest stars than ever. Here's his review.

Only Murders in the Building, since premiering on the Hulu streaming service in 2021, has gotten plenty of Emmy nominations, but hasn't really gotten its due. Even for the 2024 Emmys, which are handed out later this month, the series was snubbed in the comedy series writing category.

Which is a small sin, because co-creators Steve Martin and John Hoffman have managed to craft a comedy mystery series in which the laughs are plentiful and the mysteries are plausible and surprising. Pulling off either one of those feats is impressive. Nailing them both is indeed Emmy-worthy.

Not that only murders is completely lacking for attention or awards. The show has won four Emmys to date, though only one for an actor, for guest star Nathan Lane in 2022. But every year, the show finds ways to showcase his regular and guest stars more creatively. And this year, for the first time, all three series leads are nominated.

And deservedly so. Steve Martin as former TV detective Charles Hayden Savage and Martin Short as former Broadway director Oliver Putnam are both insufferably egotistic and painfully insecure and sporadically gleefully hilarious. And Selena Gomez as mystery podcasting fan Mabel Mora is as droll and dry as Martin Short's Oliver is bubbly and over the top.

The new season of Only Murders in the Building takes this unlikely trio to a new setting, but only temporarily. Because of the success of their previous seasons of crime-solving, the three podcasting partners are flown to Hollywood, where a movie executive hopes to buy their life rights and make a movie based on their adventures. The movie exec is played by Molly Shannon, formerly of Saturday Night Live, who throws a glitzy party for the new arrivals.

At the party, she tries to wow them by introducing them to the actors cast to play their big screen counterparts. Eugene Levy from Schitt's Creek as Charles, Zach Galifianakis from The Hangover as Oliver, and Eva Longoria from Desperate Housewives as Mabel. Charles and Mabel are starstruck. Oliver, not so much. Charles, Oliver, and Mabel, this is, well, Charles, Oliver, and Mabel. I'm Eugene Levy.

I'm Eva Longoria. Yeah. I'm... I want to say Tim. I'm Jack Black. Oh, that's it. Yeah. I'm not Jack Black. Oliver, this is Zach Gallifragilisticexpialidocious. Oh, yes! Zach Gallifragilisticexpialidocious, of course. Ha! I see what you're doing. People do this. You're trying to between two ferns me. Between the what? Okay, look. I might not be a desperate housewife or Mr. Schitts over here, but I happen to have started the second highest grossing comedy of all freaking time.

Are you the little boy from Home Alone? What did they do to you? I'm out. I'm done. Once the movie is greenlit, Charles, Oliver, and Mabel head back to their familiar New York apartment complex, where a recent bullet hole found in the window of Charles' apartment leads them to suspect he may have been targeted for murder. They also suspect the sniper may have aimed from one of the apartments across their courtyard.

Charles studies the behavior of the residents occupying the West Tower, then convenes his podcast partners to discuss his suspicions. At this point, only murders becomes the comedy equivalent of rear window. Like James Stewart in that famous Hitchcock movie, our heroes expect that evil is afoot across the way.

But with these three, the way they go about their voyeuristic inquiry highlights their very distinct and very funny personalities. Why don't we talk through what we know about the residents of the West Tower? The Westies. They're an odd bunch. Weirdos. Loners. Renters.

You don't have to say it like that. Yeah, Boomer, not everyone was alive when an apartment cost a bag of beans. I'd kill to rent anything. All right, Charles. Tell us about the Westies and why they might, for argument's sake, want you dead. There's Stink-Eyed Joe. Seems hostile. Always looking over here, giving me the stink eye. Ah.

There's the sauce family. Always stirring some kind of sauce at all hours. And looking over here, three people, lots of pots, always stirring. Are they stirring up a nice batch of murder? Both of these season four plots, the movie being made and a new murder in the building, make room for a small commuter plane full of guest stars, all of whom come to play and show us a great time.

And almost all the Only Murders actors nominated for Emmys this year in various supporting categories are back, including Divine Joy Randolph, Paul Rudd, and Meryl Streep. And Jane Lynch, Melissa McCarthy, Scott Bakula, and Richard Kind are here, too. They're all wonderful. And Meryl Streep and Paul Rudd, in particular, are doing great work. With their screen time and no-holds-barred performances, they may as well be considered series regulars.

The show's writing is up to their level, and so are the show's three headliners. When Meryl Streep shares intimate or sad or joyous scenes with Martin Short, they all work. This season, there's a major influx of talent added to Only Murders in the Building, but the new and returning faces don't outshine the stars. They shine and play right along with them.

David Bianculli is a professor of television studies at Rowan University. He reviewed the new season of Only Murders in the Building, now streaming on Hulu. Tomorrow on Fresh Air, investigative journalist Jessica Pischko. In her new book, The Highest Law in the Land, she writes that a growing group of constitutional sheriffs have become a flashpoint in the current politics of toxic masculinity, guns, white supremacy, and rural resentment. I hope you can join us. ♪

Our interviews and reviews are produced and edited by Phyllis Myers, Anne-Marie Baldonado, Sam Brigger, Lauren Krenzel, Heidi Saman, Teresa Madden, Monique Nazareth, Thea Chaloner, Susan Yakundi, and Joel Wolfram. With Terry Gross, I'm Tanya Mosley. This message comes from NPR sponsor Merrill. Whatever your financial goals are, you want a straightforward path there. But the real world doesn't usually work that way. Merrill understands that.

That's why, with a dedicated Merrill advisor, you get a personalized plan and a clear path forward. Go to ml.com slash bullish to learn more. Merrill, a Bank of America company. What would you like the power to do? Investing involves risk. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., registered broker-dealer, registered investment advisor, member SIPC.

This message comes from NPR sponsor Merrill. Whatever your financial goals are, you want a straightforward path there. But the real world doesn't usually work that way. Merrill understands that.

That's why, with a dedicated Merrill advisor, you get a personalized plan and a clear path forward. Go to ml.com slash bullish to learn more. Merrill, a Bank of America company. What would you like the power to do? Investing involves risk. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, registered broker-dealer, registered investment advisor, member SIPC.