‘Only Murders in the Building’ Season 6 Is Becoming a ‘Doctor Who’ Reunion Set in London

If you’re tasked with solving a London murder, apparently it’s pretty helpful to have a Doctor—or three of them—on the case. That’s certainly the situation in the upcoming sixth season of Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, which is shifting locales to across the pond and should get the attention of Doctor Who around the world.

David Tennant, Jodie Whittaker and the just-announced Peter Capaldi are all joining Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez for the show’s London adventure. In other words, the Tenth, Twelfth and Thirteenth Doctors are about to inhabit the same murder mystery, though no one should expect the TARDIS to be anywhere in sight. 

Hulu’s official Only Murders in the Building account had some fun with the announcement, declaring, “Season 6 is shaping up to be a real WHOdunit!” Details of the Doctors’ roles are being kept under wraps for the time being, and there’s no indication whether the three former Doctors will actually share scenes, but just having them appearing in the same season makes for a pretty remarkable unofficial Doctor Who reunion.

What is ‘Only Murders in London’?

Since premiering in 2021, Only Murders in the Building has followed Charles-Haden Savage (Steve Martin), Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) and Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez), three residents of the Arconia apartment building on Manhattan’s Upper West Side who bond over their obsession with true crime. Naturally, when people start dying around them, the trio begin investigating the cases themselves—while turning their adventures into a true-crime podcast.

Season 6 changes that formula in one significant way in that they’re leaving the building. Hulu confirmed when it renewed the series last October that the sixth season would take Charles, Oliver and Mabel to London. More recently, Disney’s D23 event has been promoting the season with the very appropriate title Only Murders in London.

The new mystery was actually set up at the end of Season 5. True-crime podcaster Cinda Canning (Tina Fey) returned with a new podcast involving a murder case in London, only to become the show’s next victim herself. Her death sets the stage for Charles, Oliver and Mabel to travel overseas looking for answers.

Three Doctors and a Master enter the mystery

For Doctor Who fans, the most intriguing part of the new cast may be the succession of Time Lords joining the investigation.

David Tennant starred as the Tenth Doctor from 2005 to 2010, becoming one of the most popular actors of the modern Doctor Who era. He subsequently made numerous return appearances and, in a unique twist, became the Fourteenth Doctor for three 60th anniversary specials in 2023.

Peter Capaldi followed Matt Smith as the Twelfth Doctor, first appearing briefly in 2013 before starring in the series from 2014 through 2017. His incarnation was older, pricklier and initially more mysterious than some of his immediate predecessors, before gradually revealing the enormous heart beneath the abrasive exterior. Then came Jodie Whittaker, who took over from Capaldi and made history as the first woman to regularly portray the Doctor, playing the Thirteenth Doctor from 2017 until 2022. All of which means Only Murders has landed three actors who collectively played the Doctor across a substantial stretch of the modern series.

But the Doctor Who connections don’t end with the Doctors. Derek Jacobi is also among the Season 6 guest cast, which creates a particularly fun connection to Tennant. Jacobi appeared in the acclaimed 2007 Doctor Who episode “Utopia” as Professor Yana, an apparently kindly scientist who eventually discovers that he is actually the Doctor’s longtime nemesis, the Master.

So while Only Murders in London isn’t a Doctor Who reunion in any official sense, its cast is beginning to look suspiciously like one, and they’re hardly alone. The sprawling Season 6 ensemble also includes Jim Broadbent, Jennifer Saunders, Martin Freeman, Nicola Coughlan, Simone Ashley, Sharon Horgan, Richard Ayoade, Jane Horrocks, Kathryn Hunter, Geri Halliwell-Horner and others.

For a series that has always delighted in loading up on unexpected guest stars, London has given Only Murders an especially deep bench of British talent. What remains unknown at this point is who Tennant, Capaldi and Whittaker are playing—or whether any of them could potentially be suspects in Cinda’s murder. For now, Doctor Who fans will have to wait for those answers. No premiere date has been announced.