A new report has further detailed the allegations against Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland, who several networks have recently dropped following sexual abuse allegations and domestic violence charges.
The Hollywood Reporter’s report includes statements from anonymous staff members detailing his inappropriate behaviour. One person claimed that Roiland “paraded a high-profile porn star through the Rick and Morty writers room, openly discussed threesomes and was involved in at least one instance of alleged sexual harassment during the show’s third season, notably its first with female writers.”
Another colleague stated that “other than voice work,” Roiland does very little at work, claiming that he “has not had any meaningful creative presence on any of the series that bear his name.” The report details that Roiland skipped meetings, showed up drunk, cancelled at the last minute, and leave the show’s writers waiting for him to show up, only to send over his voice performance work.
Apparently, writing sessions for the hit adult animated series were much “easier when Roiland wasn’t in the room,” and the division between him and co-creator Dan Harmon was so extreme that a professional mediator often had to be present to intervene.
Since the allegations and charges have come to light, Hulu, Adult Swim, Disney 20th Century Animation, and his own company, Squanch Games, have dropped Roiland.
According to the report, Roiland “simply stopped showing up “by the end of the show’s third season. He hasn’t received a single writing credit since, although he has continued to provide the voice for the show’s titular characters.
His legal representative T Edward Welbourn released a press statement arguing: “Not only is Justin innocent, but we also have every expectation that this matter is on course to be dismissed once the district attorney’s office has completed its methodical review of the evidence. We look forward to clearing Justin’s name and helping him move forward as swiftly as possible.”
