Oscar winner Olivia Colman has joined season six of Only Murders in the Building as the Disney+ comedy series moves to London.
The Norwich-born British actress becomes the latest guest star added to the sixth season of the flagship show. She joins Scottish actor David Tennant in the upcoming installment of the popular mystery comedy.
The production leaves behind the iconic skyscrapers of New York City, where previous seasons were based, to cross the Atlantic for its next chapter. The new storyline will swap Manhattan for the streets of London, with scenes set around historic thoroughfares including Oxford Street, Regent Street, and Bond Street.
The series combines true crime tropes, podcast culture, and a lead cast featuring Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez as amateur sleuths. While Disney+ has not announced an official premiere date, season six is scheduled to arrive in late 2026 or early 2027.
Only Murders in the Building is an American mystery comedy-drama series created for streaming by Hulu and Disney+. The narrative follows three residents of an apartment building who share a passion for true crime podcasts and form their own show after mysterious deaths occur in their building.
Olivia Colman career and award history
Colman, who was born in Norwich, Norfolk, has established herself as one of the most acclaimed British actors of her generation. Her career spans television comedy, film drama, and major international studio productions. She first reached widespread public attention in the United Kingdom through her starring role in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show before transitioning into acclaimed dramatic roles.
Her television profile grew significantly with featured performances in the Olympic comedy Twenty Twelve, the anthology drama Accused, and the crime drama Broadchurch. In Broadchurch, Colman portrayed Detective Sergeant Ellie Miller alongside Tennant, winning the BAFTA Television Award for Best Leading Actress in 2014 for her performance.
Colman achieved major international film success with her starring role as Queen Anne in the 2018 period drama The Favourite, directed by Greek filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos. Her portrayal of the British monarch earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress in 2019, along with the BAFTA Award in the same category.
Following her Oscar win, Colman maintained a prominent profile across film and television. Her major screen projects include the miniseries The Night Manager, the comedy-drama Fleabag, and the Netflix historical drama series The Crown. She portrayed Queen Elizabeth II in the third and fourth seasons of The Crown, winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in 2021.
Her career achievements include multiple BAFTA Awards, Golden Globe Awards, an Emmy Award, and Screen Actors Guild Awards. Her addition to Only Murders in the Building represents her latest high-profile television project as the show expands its production to the United Kingdom.
Disney+ considers introducing free tier
Alongside the casting news, Disney Chief Executive Officer Josh D'Amaro confirmed that Disney+ is studying the possibility of launching a free account tier. Company leadership acknowledged that Disney is evaluating the free account option to attract new users and expand the global audience for its streaming service.
The potential introduction of a free tier could represent a significant development in the streaming industry given the scale of Disney's content library. Disney+ holds exclusive rights to major global entertainment franchises, including Marvel, Star Wars, FOX, Disney, and Pixar, providing the service with a major competitive advantage over rival platforms.
Disney+ launched in late 2019 as the primary direct-to-consumer video platform for The Walt Disney Company. The service competes in a crowded global streaming landscape alongside platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Apple TV+.
Disney has not set a launch date or announced a concrete plan for how the free tier would operate. Executive leadership is evaluating various distribution formulas that would allow non-subscribers to view select platform content without purchasing a monthly subscription.
One option under evaluation involves incorporating FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV) channels directly into the Disney+ app. FAST channels stream scheduled, ad-supported linear content over the internet without requiring a paid subscription, a model already adopted by rival services such as Amazon Prime Video. Under this approach, Disney+ users could access a limited selection of films and series, debut episodes, or rotating content, similar to the free viewing option recently introduced by Movistar Plus in Spain.
FAST channel strategy and TikTok partnership
Disney intends for the free access tier to function as an entry point for non-subscribers, introducing viewers to its broad content catalog before encouraging them to convert into paid subscribers over time.
In addition to the free account evaluation, Disney confirmed a new strategic alliance with the social media platform TikTok. The collaboration will allow content creators to utilize official characters and assets from Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, and other Disney franchises when creating TikTok video content.
The project will launch initially as a pilot program in the United States. Disney stated that if the pilot achieves success in the American market, the company plans to expand the TikTok video integration to additional international territories.
