Future seasons of Rick and Morty shouldn't require as much of a wait as season 4 did, according to star Chris Parnell. More than two years separated seasons 3 and 4, while around 18 months separated seasons 2 and 3. Four seasons in six-and-a-half years is relatively low for any show, but waiting has become part of the experience of being a Rick and Morty fan.
Why might that change? In May 2018, Rick and Morty was renewed for 70 episodes. And now that the wait for a season renewal won't be a factor, the release of new episodes should be a lot faster.
Talking to our sister site GamesRadar, voice actor Chris Parnell, who plays Jerry, weighed in on why that commitment from Adult Swim puts the show in a good place. "I think, knowing now that we have the 70-episode order, I think there's going to be less of a wait," he says.
Parnell weighed in specifically on why season 4 took so long. "I think they just had to catch up with the scripts and it obviously takes a while to get it animated."
Parnell also suggested that because the show is mostly animated in Canada, lockdown restrictions won't hit the show as badly as they might've if the show was animated in Asia.
"It's the usual hold-up," Parnell elaborated on season 4's delays. "Except in the past because there was a big hold-up because we were waiting to see if there was a deal with Adult Swim or Turner. Once that was put into place, I think they were set up to move at a bit of a brisker pace."
- How to watch Rick and Morty season 4 part 2 onlinehttps://www.techradar.com/news/rick-and-morty-season-5-shouldnt-take-to-make-as-long-as-season-4-did
- Every Rick and Morty episode ranked
- New on Netflix this week
Rick and Morty season 5 scripts are written
Rick and Morty season 5 scripts have existed as of at least September 2019, when writer Jeff Loveness posted a photo of episode 1's script on Twitter.
Today was my last day at Rick and Morty. I wrote 5 episodes and worked with amazing people. I hope you like it. pic.twitter.com/WjrMRP7i7jSeptember 21, 2019
Writing an episode is one thing, but animating it is extremely time-consuming. Rick and Morty has a lot of demands in terms of new worlds and characters in pretty much every episode. That means one minute of the show can take four weeks to animate, according to Bardel Entertanment's Nathan Litz.
Our best guess is that early 2021 is the earliest we'll see Rick and Morty season 5, but in the meantime, new episodes air every Sunday on Adult Swim in the US, and every Thursday on E4 in the UK.
- Rick and Morty is coming to HBO Max
- Rick and Morty season 5: release date, cast, and more
