Adult Swim Has Severed Ties With Justin Roiland, But Will Continue Producing ‘Rick And Morty’
Adult Swim, a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery, announced this afternoon that it has severed ties with Justin Roiland, co-creator and star of Rick & Morty, following a news report earlier this month that Roiland had been charged with felony domestic violence in 2020.
The network further added that “Rick and Morty will continue” and that the “crew are hard at work on season 7.” Roiland’s voice roles are expected to be re-cast.
If production of Rick and Morty continues as originally planned, many more episodes of the show will be produced without Roiland’s involvement. That’s because Roiland and co-creator Dan Harmon signed an unprecedented 70-episode renewal for the series in 2018, and to date, only 30 episodes of that order have been completed and aired.
The Walt Disney Company, which produces two other Roiland shows – Solar Opposites and Koala Man – has not commented or taken any public action since the charges against Roiland came to light.
Roiland has been charged with one felony count of domestic battery with corporal injury and another felony count of false imprisonment by menace, violence, fraud, and/or deceit. The alleged incident occurred in January 2020 against an unnamed Jane Doe whom Roiland was dating at the time, and it is alleged that Roiland “did wilfully and unlawfully inflict corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition.”
Roiland’s attorney maintains that his client is innocent. Roiland is due back in court for another hearing on April 27. He faces multiple years in prison if found guilty.
