Rick and Morty is making its way to the big screen with a fresh directorial collaboration. Jacob Hair, who has been directing episodes of the long-running Adult Swim series since 2019, is in talks to helm an animated feature film for Warner Bros., as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. While plot details are still under wraps, the film is in early development, and fans are eagerly anticipating its release.
Rick and Morty, which debuted in 2013, has consistently ranked as basic cable's most-watched comedy over the past few seasons and has even earned multiple Emmy awards. In addition to this, Adult Swim is soon launching a spinoff series titled "President Curtis," featuring voice actor Keith David in the titular role.
Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland co-created Rick and Morty, a show centered around inventor Rick Sanchez and his universe-spanning adventures with his teen grandson, Morty. However, in early 2023, Adult Swim parted ways with Roiland following felony domestic abuse charges that were later dismissed. Prior to that, Roiland had voiced both titular characters, which were subsequently recast.
The show is set to launch its ninth season on Sunday and has been renewed through season 12. Jacob Hair serves as the supervising director of the show and will now bring his expertise to the big screen adaptation.
Harmon confirmed in a recent interview that the team was thrilled to have found their director within the show's staff: "Jacob Hair is the director. We didn't shop around." In 2023, Harmon told THR that he had been part of conversations with Warner Bros. executives about a Rick and Morty movie and recalled feeling optimistic about the project.
"My philosophy would be to just take a Rick and Morty adventure and spend a bunch of extra money on it to make it 90 minutes long," said Harmon. "Not to try to earn its feature status by virtue of canonical dramatic tone shifts or anything like that, but rather to just make it a super badass episode of Rick and Morty."
Harmon also noted that filmmaker Zack Snyder had offered to help bring a feature version of Rick and Morty to life: "He was totally a super fan and was just like, 'Is there any way I can help get that movie started by using my Snyder-ness?'" Snyder later appeared in a cameo during the eighth season of Rick and Morty.
