Rick And Morty Creators Tease The Return Of An Iconic Villain

The revealing Season 6 premiere of "Rick and Morty" ensured fans that the newest adventures of the dysfunctional duo would indeed build on the series' established canon. The typically standalone, episodic animated hit rarely indulges in serialized storytelling, but when it does, the results are often mind-blowing and inspire an abundance of fan theories. These sprawling ideas portray the devoted passion and impressive analytical skills of the fandom, giving the adult animation depth and substance.

Over the course of the series' run, Rick and Morty have encountered a multitude of colorful villains, including the resurrected Phoenix Person with the deranged and undercover Tammy, the corrupt intergalactic league The Federation, and an Avengers-style spoof team The Vindicators. However, more often than not, our heroes are the villains themselves as we continually encounter alternate versions of the super genius mastermind Rick and his lackey grandson Morty. In the Citadel, there is an overwhelming amount of coexisting Ricks and Mortys, but one devious variant stands out from the rest — and we haven't seen the last of him.

Evil Morty (voiced by Justin Roiland) has been a recurring character since Season 1 Episode 10 "Close Rick-Counters of the Rick Kind," playing on Steven Spielberg's beloved sci-fi film title. The seemingly unfeeling sociopath is a distinctive version of Morty that has grown exceedingly tired of Rick's condescending and manipulative ways. He has been unveiling a patient master plan since Season 1 to enact revenge and possibly wipe out every iteration of Rick in the multiverse.

With such a drastic turn of character, it's no surprise Evil Morty has led to an increasing amount of fan discussion on Reddit. His fatal flaw is being self-assertive and demanding, which has led to some fans having a hard time calling him "evil." This version of Morty also acts more like Rick, so to label his qualities as wicked would in turn name Rick evil as well, by nature.  

After a jaw-dropping cliffhanger in Season 5, fans are more than ready for the return of Evil Morty and his new golden portal gun. In an interview with Variety, co-creator Dan Harmon offers a bit of hope: "You will definitely be seeing him again. I caution that we may not be seeing him soon. He's an easy guy to forget about because he kind of took care of himself. Harmon has also shared that Season 7 is in production and the writers are working on Season 8 to fulfill the earlier promise of a new season every year (via Inverse).