Adult Swim dropped the much-anticipated season 7 trailer of animated sci-fi series Rick and Morty on Monday, introducing a significant (but subtle) change.
Can you hear it?
The trailer features new performers voicing the titular two, replacing co-creator Justin Roiland, who was dismissed in 2022 following domestic allegations.
Adult Swim is keeping the identity of the two voice actors (one for Rick and another for Morty) confidential until the show’s season 7 premiere on October 15.
Rick and Morty is known to blend crude humor and existential horror, often reflecting on the psychological impact of living in an infinite multiverse. The animation has grown from cult hit to merchandising behemoth, having been viewed more than 10 billion times globally, according to Warner Bros. Discovery.
Why Was Justin Roiland Replaced On Rick And Morty?
The voice of both Rick and Morty, Roiland was a big name in animation, appearing in beloved shows like Gravity Falls, Adventure Time, The Simpsons, Robot Chicken, Invincible and Solar Opposites.
Despite lacking range, Roiland’s stuttering voicework is distinctively raw; his characters sound as though they struggle to articulate every sentence, often overwhelmed with fear and rage.
In January 2023, NBC News reported that Roiland had been charged with domestic battery and false imprisonment over an alleged incident in 2020.
The charges were later dismissed due to insufficient evidence, but the announcement of the charges prompted several individuals to come forward with claims of sexual abuse and harassment by Roiland, many of which went viral on social media.
Following the flood of allegations, Roiland was dropped from Rick and Morty, along with Hulu’s Solar Opposites and Koala Man. Roiland also resigned from his position of CEO of Squanch Games, the video game studio that he co-founded in 2016.
According to a detailed report released by The Hollywood Reporter, Roiland had a history of inappropriate workplace behavior and was “involved in at least one instance of alleged sexual harassment during [Rick and Morty’s] third season.”
Notably, Rick and Morty did not include female writers in the writers room until the third season.
On September 13, NBC News reported that more sexual assault allegations had been made against Roiland, along with claims of predatory behavior toward minors.
Have The Voices Of Rick And Morty Changed?
Judging from the clips featured in the trailer, Rick and Morty’s new voice actors are almost perfect soundalikes, with Morty’s nailing the character’s high-pitched anxiety. Rick’s speaking voice is a close match, but his yelling lacks the grizzled, “hungover” quality of Roiland’s performance.
Otherwise, the two characters sound pretty much the same.
Online, many Rick and Morty fans expressed relief; others joked that replacing Roiland must have been made easier by the (presumably) large number of fans out there who have spent far too much time mimicking the two characters.
TikTok creator @seankellysays went viral with his pitch-perfect Morty impression, and even clarified on X (formerly known as Twitter) that he did not voice the character in season 7.
Previously, fans speculated that the voices of Rick and Morty might be changed entirely, with the show’s sci-fi setting and multiverse providing a perfect excuse to move in a fresh direction, far away from Roiland.
Solar Opposites took this approach, as Roiland’s character, the alien scientist Korvo, had his voice permanently altered by a gadget, allowing British actor Dan Stevens to reinterpret the character.
What Does This Mean For ‘Rick And Morty’ Going Forward?
Not a lot. At most, fans can expect a little less stammering, belching and bizarre outbursts from Rick and Morty. Roiland was known for his stream-of-consciousness tangents, with the “Interdimensional Basic Cable” episodes being completely improvised, to mixed results.
Even with Roiland burping and stuttering into the mic, later seasons saw the character’s vocal tics fade, as Roiland had distanced himself from the creative process long before the allegations came to light.
Rick and Morty co-creator Dan Harmon, often credited as the driving force behind the show’s most memorable storylines, has reportedly not been on speaking terms with Roiland for several seasons.
According to Roiland’s colleagues cited in The Hollywood Reporter, Roiland had long ceased to contribute “any meaningful creative presence on any of the series that bear his name,” outside of voicework, with a “substantial” number of staff claiming to have never even met him.
Hopefully, Rick and Morty will continue to shock, horrify and delight fans in season 7 and beyond.
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