Rick and Morty Season 7 has finally premiered, and the first episode has officially revealed the new voice actors playing Rick Sanchez and Morty Smith. It’s an exciting revelation since Adult Swim confirmed that the main duo would be recast following Justin Roiland’s exit from the animated series. But what is in store for the show now that Roiland is no longer connected to the wildly successful series?
In January 2023, Adult Swim announced that they are cutting ties with Justin Roiland, and the co-creator will be immediately removed from the next season of Rick and Morty. The firing came shortly after Roiland was accused of domestic violence and abuse. The news led to speculations about the show’s future, with fans wondering if they can ever replace Roiland, who provided the voice of the two main characters.
Can Rick and Morty Continue Without Justin Roiland?
Not surprisingly, fans wondered if Rick and Morty Season 7 would be completed without Roiland. After all, he was the voice of Rick Sanchez and Morty Smith, and people feared he could not be properly replaced in the series. However, the seventh season’s premiere proved that Rick and Morty can move on without the co-creator.
In the premiere episode, How Poopy Got His Poop Back, Rick Sanchez and Morty Smith returned, and although they sounded a little different, the change was hardly noticeable. It has since been revealed that Ian Cardoni now plays Rick, while Harry Belden portrays Morty. The first episode of Season 7 immediately proved that the new voice actors easily managed to take on the roles.
Finding the new voices of Rick and Morty was indeed a relief for fans and the creative team behind the series. As showrunner Scott Marder confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter, it wasn’t easy to recast the leading duo since many were eager to take on the role.
“We heard thousands. It went on for six months. It was really wide,” Marder said. “It almost went so wide that we debated doing a global hotline, though we knew it would wind up being a prank line. We felt like we needed to go that far and wide.”
Finding the New Rick Sanchez
Rick Sanchez is a truly unique character, so much so because of Roiland’s portrayal of the time-traveling alcoholic. Because of this, finding a new voice actor to take on the role was understandably the most challenging thing for Rick and Morty Season 7.
“Rick was a lot harder than I expected; everyone sounded like Macho Man Randy Savage or like a cousin of his,” Marder said. “No one sounded exactly like Rick. It was tricky. People had it in splashes, but once you bring them back in, they couldn’t do it conversationally, which is what we needed. It was exhaustive.”
Luckily, Ian Cardoni came in, and everything finally fell into place. Marder praised both Cardoni and Harry Belden for their hard work. “They both came through rigorous casting calls. Ian was early on, and Harry came after we exhausted every resource. We had multiple waves of narrowing people down,” he said.
The Future After Rick and Morty Season 7
Rick and Morty Season 7 is certainly in full swing, and the fans have wholeheartedly accepted the new voice actors playing the main duo. But could this mean they will stay with the show in the long run?
The current season will only consist of 10 episodes, but there will be more in the future. Cartoon Network has already ordered 70 new episodes of Rick and Morty, ensuring that the series will last several seasons in the future. If the new voice actors continue their work, they are set to continue playing Rick and Morty up until Season 10, allowing the show to move forward and continue after Roiland’s departure.
The second episode of Rick and Morty Season 7 is titled The Jerrick Trap and will premiere on Adult Swim on October 22, 2023.
