“Rick and Morty” fans, rejoice! In addition to the remaining 87 years of “Rick and Morty” left, it seems we are also getting a feature film at some point in the future. At least that’s what showrunner/executive producer Scott Marder and co-creator/executive producer Dan Harmon told /Film’s own Ethan Anderton during an interview for Season 9, which begins on May 24, 2026 on Adult Swim.
As reports surfaced (via Deadline) that Jacob Hair would be directing a movie, we asked Harmon and Marder if they could confirm the news. Hair might be familiar to “Rick and Morty” fans, as he’s directed several episodes of the animated series, including the beloved “The Vat of Acid Episode.”
“We wouldn’t want anyone but Jacob Hair in that seat, so that’s easy to confirm,” Harmon said, before joking a bit about whether the movie will even happen. “I mean, is it up to us? I don’t know. Who owns us? We’ll find out tomorrow. But yeah, I mean, Jacob is the guy for the job, and the rest would be conjecture. It’s just like philosophically, ‘and therefore this will probably happen.'”
“We can confirm that it’s real,” added Marder.
This is not the first time a “Rick and Morty” movie has been discussed. Previously, there were plans for a movie in the vein of the “South Park” movie before the idea was scrapped. At the time, the dual SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes put that idea on indefinite hold, but it seems a “Rick and Morty” movie is back on track. Whether this will be a “super episode” like the original plan, or something new, remains to be seen. Though plot details are non-existent, we did get some idea about how connected the movie and the show will be.
The Rick and Mory movie will probably be a standalone, accessible space epic
Adult Swim
“Rick and Morty” has an unusual relationship with continuity — Dan Harmon himself having a unique and galaxy brain take on canon. So it shouldn’t be surprising that Harmon doesn’t want the “Rick and Morty” movie to be “bogged down by canon,” as he calls it.
“I would be going for more of an Indiana Jones. If you look at Indiana Jones, it’s technically kind of a, it’s a fake sequel to it,” Harmon said. “It’s an adaptation of a TV show that never existed, to listen to [George] Lucas and [Steven] Spielberg talk about it. They started from the idea that Indiana Jones already existed as a franchise.”
“So, if I were to be making these kinds of decisions, I would be like, we need to go for something like that,” the creator continued. “We want to reward people for being into the universe, and yet, shockingly, we would want to have it be an incredible standalone, like totally accessible space epic.” Though Harmon did also joke, “But what am I doing? I’m not working on anything like that. I got other projects I need to be focused on.”
Honestly, this sounds like the best way to approach any kind of extension of the “Rick and Morty” franchise. The creative freedom Adult Swim gives the show is already its biggest asset, so to restrict that by forcing the story to be connected to the TV show or to be set up in some tie-in episode would take away from what makes “Rick and Morty” special. Instead, a supersized episode that couldn’t be done on TV but doesn’t require much homework to enjoy is the best path forward. This is how the TV show itself functions, after all, with even the big lore-heavy episodes working regardless of your familiarity with the prior episodes.
While you wait for the movie, “Rick and Morty” returns for Season 9 on May 24 at 11pm ET on Adult Swim.
