Pratik Handore
Season 3 of Hulu’s ‘Only Murders in the Building‘ follows Charles, Mabel, and Oliver as they investigate the murder of actor Ben Glenroy. In episode 8, the trio faces a whirlwind of challenges at the Goosebury Theater, where they must juggle Oliver’s rehearsal with a police interrogation. Meanwhile, Loretta’s past is revealed, and a secret she has been hiding could be linked to Ben’s death. As a result, viewers must be curious to find out how Loretta’s secret changes the course of Mabel’s investigation and Oliver’s play. Here is a recap of the events and answers about the ending of ‘Only Murders in the Building’ season 3, episode 8! SPOILERS AHEAD!
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 8 Recap
The eighth episode, titled ‘Sitzprobe,’ opens with a flashback to Loretta Durkin’s past. Loretta reveals that she harbored the dream of becoming a she was a child. However, while working on a play, she had a brief romance with her director, resulting in pregnancy. Since she was very young, Loretta gave up the baby for adoption to a couple with trouble conceiving a child. Consequently, Loretta moved to New York City to pursue her dream. The Glenroys raised her baby and now goes by Robert “Dickie” Glenroy.
After learning of Ben Glenroy’s Broadway debut, Loretta engineered an auction to get a role in Oliver Putnam’s play so that she could get to know her long-lost son. During the Sitzprobe rehearsal of Oliver’s revamped iteration of ‘Death Rattle,’ Loretta plans to tell the truth to Dickie. As a result, she asks Dickie out for a dinner. Meanwhile, Oliver is surprised to find Mabel at the rehearsal as she continues her investigation of Ben’s death. Charles tries to broker peace between Oliver and Mabel but fails.
Just as the rehearsals catch pace, news breaks that Gregg, who was arrested for killing Ben, has been released from police custody, and the killer is still at larger. Moreover, the rehearsals are interrupted when Detective Williams arrives on the scene and wants to interrogate the play’s cast and crew. After much deliberation, Oliver realizes that the only way to ensure his play goes to opening night is to let Mabel complete the investigation and find the killer. Mabel believes that Dickie killed his own brother, and Charles and Oliver agree to help her.
Howard explains he has evidence that could lead Mabel to the killers. Mabel works on Howard’s lead while instructing Charles and Oliver to get the interrogation recorded. Howard shows Mabel the shredder in Ben’s dressing room and reveals that someone was trying to shred evidence when he heard the noise on opening night. As a result, Howard and Mabel work on recreating the shredded documents, hoping to find a clue about the killer. Charles and Oliver try to eavesdrop on Detective Williams’ conversations. However, she throws them out of the interrogation room.
Oliver returns the boom he took from Loretta’s apartment and reveals Mabel thinks Dickie killed Ben. Loretta tries to convince Mabel that Dickie isn’t a killer, which raises the latter’s suspicions. Mabel reaches a dead end when Howard finds nothing useful in the trash, but she encourages him to continue looking. Charles performs his song, which was bait for Detective Williams so that Oliver could set up a hidden camera in the interrogation. Charles, Oliver, and Mabel reconcile while the police decide to make an arrest.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 8 Ending: Why Did Loretta Confess?
In the episode’s final act, Mabel is overjoyed after learning Charles and Oliver worked together to help her get recordings of the interrogations. The group reconciles while Mabel asks Charles and Oliver to return to the podcast. Meanwhile, Dickie tells Loretta that on opening night, he and Ben had a fight. However, he admits that he hoped to reconcile with Ben later, but his brother was killed. Loretta performs her song on stage when the police arrive to arrest Dickie. As Dickie is being escorted away, Charles and Mabel go through Loretta’s bag and find the letter written for Dickie revealing his true parentage.
Ultimately, Loretta cannot watch Dickie being arrested and decides to confess. She admits to killing Ben and explains she poisoned him on opening night. However, when Ben survived, Loretta pushed him down the elevator shaft, killing the famous actor. Oliver tries to plead with the police, but Loretta is arrested and taken into custody. However, it does not seem like she is the actual killer. The episode firmly establishes Loretta’s affection for her long-lost son, Dickie, and emphasizes a mother’s need to protect her children. As a result, it seems like Loretta is giving a false confession to protect her son from going to prison. As a result, the true killer remains at large.
Will Oliver Die?
After Loretta’s arrest, Oliver is devastated as he had professed his love for her moments ago. As the police drag Loretta away, Oliver’s heart can no longer take the stress. Oliver collapsed in the Goosebury theater, presumably from another heart attack. After learning of his play’s scathing review, Oliver suffered a heart attack and was advised to avoid stress. His entire motivation this season has been to ensure his play is a success as it marks his grand return to Broadway. However, Ben’s death, the ongoing investigation, and now the arrest of Loretta put Oliver at the end of his line, and his play has no hopes of making it to the opening. Despite the stressful circumstances Oliver faces, it is unlikely he will die.
Read More: Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 7 Recap and Ending, Explained
