May 11, 2018

Unprecedented! 'Rick and Morty' Receives 70-Episode Renewal Order

Adult Swim's TV series "Rick and Morty" was not just renewed yesterday, it received a 10-year renewal.

AdultSwim signed creators Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland to a long-term deal for 70 new episodes.

Only 31 half-hour episodes were produced in the first three seasons, but Harmon said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly last fall that he believed he was ready to do up to 14 episodes a season The 70-episode commitment will be split into five neatly divided into two 14-episode seasons, which could be a clue to how Adult Swim and Ricky and Morty's production studio, Starburns Industries, are structuring the new deal.

Whatever the breakdown, a 70-minute by 22-minute update is almost unheard of in the animation industry. Only a handful of L.A. artists have experienced it, including "The Simpsons," "SpongeBob," "South Park," and a series by Seth MacFarlane.

The renewal is a sign of Adult Swim's strong confidence in the program's future. By the network's metrics, "Rick and Morty" was the #1 most-watched comedy by millennials across television in 2017. The network described the show as a "multi-platform sensation," citing its success "across all digital, gaming, live streaming, retail, and fan experiences, not just television."

The 70 additional episodes will bring the show's overall episode count to over 100, making the series a candidate for syndication and further ensuring the series' profitability in the long run.

Harmon and Rolando "announced" the new episodes via this video on Instagram:

Never seen anything this big in my shower

A post shared by Dan Harmon (@danharmon) on May 10, 2018 at 9:16am PDT