- 'Rick and Morty' is a hit animated show
- Co-creator Justin Roiland was fired after criminal allegations
- THESE are the show's new voice actors
As soon as the domestic violence charges against 'Rick and Morty' co-creator and star Justin Roiland were first made public knowledge back in January, Adult Swim made it clear that they were both cutting ties with Roiland and continuing with the hugely popular animated sci-fi series. As a result, fans have wondered ever since who would be stepping in to replace Roiland as the voices of Rick and Morty, among other characters.
Ian Cardoni and Harry Belden will provide the new voices of Rick and Morty, respectively. They replace Justin Roiland, series co-creator and voice of both "Rick" and "Morty", as well as several supporting characters, who departed the show in January following the since-dropped charges of domestic violence. Adult Swim didn’t reveal the new actors’ identities until minutes into Sunday’s episode as CNN reports.
Ian and Harry have big shoes to fill
After a nearly six-month search that featured thousands of candidates, newcomers Ian Cardoni and Harry Belden now find themselves squarely in the spotlight after they officially made their debut as the voices of the narcissistic, alcoholic genius "Rick" that Ian will play, and his bumbling grandson "Morty" that Harry will play, in the season seven premiere of the Adult Swim animated hit.
The fact is, these kind of changes can make or break a show's future. After all, the original voices are now iconic. According to actor bios provided by Adult Swim, Belden is an actor from Chicago and has worked at several theaters there. His TV roles include 'Joe Pera Talks with You', 'Chicago Med', and 'Proven Innocent'.
Cardoni, on the other hand, is a Boston-area native who now resides in Los Angeles, and has appeared alongside Larry David in HBO's 'Clear History'. He has also voiced prompts for 'Resident Alien' and the 'WWE'. This is the first time that two different actors have played the lead characters, and so, it's a major challenge for production.
"For sheer quality of life, it'd be easier for the amount of work required for both characters," showrunner Scott Marder told 'The Hollywood Reporter', citing "rigorous casting calls" that lasted six months. "We watched it over the years wear down on Roiland's voice. It felt unfair to do that to someone."
The new cast is ready to go
The season premiere saw Rick and an eccentric crew attempt to stage an intervention for a heartbroken friend with addiction issues. Hugh Jackman guest-starred as himself. 'Rick and Morty' has been a mega-hit for Adult Swim over its acclaimed run, which began in 2013. It has won two Emmys, is frequently listed as one of the best TV comedies of the 21st century and has spawned collaborations with McDonald’s and the popular video game 'Fortnite' among many others.
Though the charges against Roiland were eventually dropped by the Orange County District Attorney's office for insufficient evidence, Adult Swim did not resume its relationship with Roiland.
A 'Hollywood Reporter' investigation in February revealed that beyond the legal charges, several women have accused Roiland of acting inappropriately towards them, and there were also reports of inappropriate workplace conduct. "I'm frustrated, ashamed, and heartbroken that a lot of hard work, joy, and passion can be leveraged to exploit and harm strangers," Dan Harmon, who co-created the show with Roiland and remains as executive producer and the voice of Birdperson, said in a recent interview.
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The Disney classic
When Scott Marder was asked about the casting process, this is how he broke it down: "Ian was one of the first people I heard when the search began; he was in first wave: 'Mark that guy, he’s got major flashes of Rick,' which was awesome. We found Harry a lot later. They just stood out. At a certain point, we couldn’t expect the first wave to just nail it from start to finish."
"Anyone that we felt like had pure moments of either character, we had to bring back and see what they could do on their feet. We brought those guys back in with a wave of people a ton of times and made them go through a bunch of sides and do all scenes in a way we wouldn’t even do normally just to see what their stamina was and if they could stay in voice. We put them through a pretty rigorous process," he confessed.
It was no easy task to arrive at the final two names. Fans are still catching up to the news, so it's still unclear what the overall reaction to the new additions have been.
You can catch season seven of 'Rick and Morty' streaming now on Adult Swim.
