Adult Swim Cuts Ties With 'Rick and Morty' Co-Creator Justin Roiland Following Domestic Abuse Charges
Roiland, who voiced both title characters in the animated series, faces felony domestic violence charges.
Adult Swim, the home of the award-winning animated series Rick and Morty, has officially cut ties with the show's co-creator and main voice actor, Justin Roiland, after it was reported that he has been charged with domestic abuse.
Marie Moore, SVP of Communications for Adult Swim, Cartoon Network and Boomerang, said in a brief statement via The Hollywood Reporter, “Adult Swim has ended its association with Justin Roiland."
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Rick and Morty is expected to continue, with the roles to be re-cast. Co-creator Dan Harmon will likely serve as the sole showrunner going forward.
In 2018, Adult Swim commissioned the show for 70 more episodes, bringing it all the way through Season 10, and it just finished Season 6 in December.
Roiland also co-created Hulu's Solar Opposites, for which he also did voice work, and he's heavily involved with the streamer's new series, Koala Man. These two projects are a part of his overall deal with 20th Television Animation.
As of writing, neither Hulu nor 20th Television Animation has made any comment on the situation.
NBC News first reported on Roiland's domestic violence charges on Jan. 12, stating that the charges are in connection with a 2020 incident in Orange County, California.
The news publication obtained the criminal complaint, which states that Roiland has been charged with one felony count of domestic battery with corporal injury and one felony count of false imprisonment by menace, violence, fraud and/or deceit.
The incident allegedly happened in January 2020 involving an anonymous woman he was dating at the time.
Roiland reportedly pleaded not guilty to the charges in October 2020, when a protective order was also filed ordering him to stay at least 100 feet away from the subject of the protective order, as well as to turn in any firearms in his possession.
The Rick and Morty co-creator's attorney T. Edward Welbourn wrote, "We look forward to clearing Justin's name and helping him move forward as swiftly as possible."