The Spoils Before Dying

Premiere date: July 8, 2015 (IFC)
Episodes: Wiig appeared in all six episodes
Directed by: Matt Piedmont
Written by: Matt Piedmont, Andrew Steele
Produced by: Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Matt Piedmont, Kristen Wiig
Running time: 21 minutes / episode
Kristen Wiig as: Delores DeWinter
Other cast: Michael K. Williams, Maya Rudolph, Will Ferrell, Haley Joel Osment, Kate McKinnon


  More information at IMDb.com

Set in 1962 during the height of the Los Angeles jazz scene, The Spoils Before Dying follows Rock as he becomes the prime suspect in the double murder of singer and his occasional lover Fresno Foxglove who is found dead in a car with another man. Panicked, Rock splits town for Mexico where he reunites with his one-time big band singer Delores DeWinter. Determined to prove his innocence and avoid the electric chair, Rock and Delores head back to the U.S. on a dangerous journey for the elusive truth. All the while, Rock’s hard charging manager Alistair St. Barnaby obliviously pressures Rock to record a mainstream jazz album.

Episode Guide

Chapter 1: Murder in B-Flat (original airdate: July 8, 2015)

Chapter 1: Murder in B-Flat (original airdate: July 8, 2015)
Legendary writer and director Eric Jonrosh (Will Ferrell) presents his lost masterpiece, The Spoils Before Dying. Jazz pianist Rock Banyon (Michael K. Williams) passes out and awakens to find he is accused of killing his one time lover Fresno Foxglove (Maya Rudolph) and scientist Wilber Stygamian. The cops give Rock three days to help solve the murder. Instead he splits town for Mexico where he runs into a washed up singer named Delores DeWinter (Kristen Wiig).

Chapter 2: Blues for Barnaby (original airdate: July 8, 2015)

Chapter 2: Blues for Barnaby (original airdate: July 8, 2015)
On the run in Mexico, Rock is visited by the ghost of Fresno Foxglove. She warns him not to dig deep into the murders. Rock decides to return to the U.S. to clear his name but a trip to the morgue reveals no clues. Meanwhile his manager Alistair Barnaby St. Bixby-Jones (Haley Joel Osment) hounds him to make a jazz album with strings and Delores bakes a cake.

Chapter 3: That’s Jazz (original airdate: July 9, 2015)

Chapter 3: That’s Jazz (original airdate: July 9, 2015)
The pressure of trying to solve the murders and clear his name is getting to Rock. After blowing a big TV gig he ends up in a bar where he meets Kenton Price (Michael Sheen). Kenton reveals that scientist Wilbur Stygamian was a powerful player in the underground 1950’s gay community. Meanwhile another body turns up, a sax player who went missing the night Fresno died.

Chapter 4: Fear Steps In (original airdate: July 9, 2015)

Chapter 4: Fear Steps In (original airdate: July 9, 2015)
With only two days to clear his name of now three murders, Rock pays a visit to Kenton. Before Kenton can tell him who the killer was, he is shot down, leaving Rock with no answers and only one name, Gerhart Moll. Back in his apartment he has a conversation with his cat about making a jazz album with strings. He then decides to break into the house of scientist Wilbur Stygamian and discovers an underground room with three evil people waiting for him.

Chapter 5: The Trip Trap (original airdate: July 10, 2015)

Chapter 5: The Trip Trap (original airdate: July 10, 2015)
In the hidden room beneath scientist Wilbur Stygamian’s house, Rock is drugged and left for dead. His hallucinations take him into the darkest corners of his mind. He survives what was supposed to be a lethal injection and pays a visit to Gerhart Moll. Gerhart knows what he is looking for – a modern statue once owned by Adolf Hitler. The statue will clear his name, but the clock is ticking and he’s not the only one looking for it.

Chapter 6: The Biscuit Eaters (original airdate: July 10, 2015)

Chapter 6: The Biscuit Eaters (original airdate: July 10, 2015)
Rock finds the mysterious statue that holds the secrets to his freedom. He heads to his cabin in the woods with his manager Alistar (Osment) and Delores (Wiig). Federal agents jump Rock and there is a shoot out. Rock explains why he can never do a jazz album with strings and then goes to meet J. Edgar Hoover (Ferrell) for a final showdown.