‘Rick and Morty’ Creators Reveal Why Its Renewal Took So Long

If you didn’t know, contract negotiations are not a fun thing to do. The legalese and number crunching could make the strongest man fall apart, but the creators of Rick and Morty aren’t what you would call pushovers. After all, the writers admit the reason the show’s big renewal took so long came down to their negotiation tactics.

Recently, Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland confirmed Rick and Morty would have a season four and then some to fans. Their hit animated comedy was renewed for a whopping 70 episodes, and it seems that order took awhile because of its size.

According to a report by GQ, Harmon would only agree to the renewal if Roiland and he were given the time and money needed to handle the project.

“Harmon and Roiland say they’re holding out for a contract that grants them immortality. Or, if immortality is unavailable, at least ‘many, many, many more seasons,’ and enough money so that, as Roiland says, Harmon ‘doesn’t have to take 12 other jobs while we’re working on season four,’” the piece writes.

Obviously, something must have gone right with the negotiations as Harmon and Roiland signed back on to oversee the Rick and Morty comeback. Way before the deal was announced, Harmon told Kevin Smith during a podcast interview that the contract deal was a bit more complicated in the wake of season three’s unprecedented success.

“The reason why we’re not working on Rick and Morty right now ain’t because I figured out that I don’t need to impress you (laughs). It’s a little something called contract negotiations, and it’s gotten complicated this time around,” the co-creator said.

For now, there is no word on how many of these 70 episodes will be filtered into season four. With the deal only having been okayed in May, Rick and Morty‘s team has a long way to go before its ready to debut its new episodes, but fans can rest assured that they will premiere eventually.

Are you looking forward to more Rick and Morty? When do you hope the show’s fourth season will go live? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!