Meryl Streep and Martin Short ‘Delighted in Each Other’ Off Screen, Says Only Murders in the Building Co-Creator

Martin Short and Meryl Streep have been denying romance rumors for close to a year, but there’s no denying the chemistry between their Only Murders in the Building characters — so much so that one of the minds behind the show is now weighing in.

John Hoffman created the hit Hulu series with Steve Martin and serves as both an executive producer and writer on the show. In a new interview, Hoffman said that it has been “unbelievable” watching Streep, 75, and Short, 74, build their rapport onscreen — and off.

“You know, it is one of the most unexpected turns but I remember thinking, like ‘God.’ As I got to know Meryl, as I’ve known Marty and as I watched the two of them work together in season 3, I just — it was unbelievable,” told Decider.

“We were laughing our heads off and they just delighted in each other on screen, off screen in every way.”

Hoffman said he felt “like the luckiest guy in the world to have [Streep] anywhere near a set that I was near,” so hearing her appreciate Loretta’s storyline “felt like one of the most gratifying things.”

“And I kept on thinking like, ‘I hope the world falls in love with this couple the way we all are,'” he said. “And that is so due to the magic that they create together.”

Though their characters’ chemistry is undeniable, in real life, the actors continue to insist they are just friends, despite speculation which began after PEOPLE confirmed last year that Streep had been separated from her husband Don Gummer for six years.

In January, a rep for Short told PEOPLE the pair are “just very good friends, nothing more,” and the actor himself later weighed in, telling Bill Maher, “We’re not a couple, we are just very close friends.”

Short later told PEOPLE that it was “coincidental” that Streep joined the show as a love interest for his character. “They already planned that I would have a theatrical experience and there would be a love interest. So that was coincidental, but she just wanted to be on the show. She didn’t know about [the love story].”

Short’s friend and costar has been having some fun with the speculation, though. On Oct. 18, Martin, 79, posted a photo from last year with Streep and Short, though he added an emoji to cover his own face in the photo.

He left the post captionless, leading fans to speculate further in the comments, with one writing, “I’m taking this as confirmation. I’ve never been so invested in celebrity couple rumors.”

Only Murders in the Building seasons 1-4 can be streamed on Hulu.