Rick and Morty is now halfway through its run on Season 8 with Adult Swim, and we got to talk with the new stars behind the titular duo about how much has changed since they joined with the show. Rick and Morty Season 7 was one of the most eventful in the animated series’ history as following Adult Swim cutting ties with co-creator Justin Roiland, the two titular characters needed to be recast. And those new stars then had to join in a production that was already very far along into its release. But that’s changed with Season 8.
Speaking with ComicBook, Rick Sanchez voice star Ian Cardoni and Morty Smith star Harry Belden opened up about how much the process for their work has changed with Rick and Morty Season 8. As the two of them explained, they had much more time to explore each of their characters and offer different kinds of options for each of the episodes compared to the conditions they needed to work through when they first started with the series just a season ago.
How Rick and Morty Season 8 Has Changed for Its Stars
“It was a different timeline,” Ian Cardoni began. “[Rick and Morty] Season 7 was so far along in its production by the time that we stepped in to do our roles that we were recording several times a week, many hours each session, to try to catch up and make sure that we could deliver on time for the fans. And that’s not the normal time frame for recording a show.” As Cardoni then continued, Rick and Morty Season 8 was much more flexible in comparison, “Season 7 was a true whirlwind, and Season 8, we had a little more time to play with each episode. That was a luxury. Not having too much to compare it to, it felt like a real luxury to have almost a full year to do Season 8. But what that did was it freed us up creatively, and it gave us time to provide more options and more directions for these characters to go in.”
As a result, Cardoni believes the two were able to warm up into their roles even more, “I think we’ve definitely warmed up into our roles, into our jobs, and we’re able to give 30 more colorful options per line, than we might have been able to in Season 7. So I think it’s only gonna get better from here.” As for Harry Belden, the Morty star recalled how he was told many times that the process for Rick and Morty would be different in the future, “I’m now remembering, actually, our lovely producer, Suzanne Belk, talking to me during Season 7 and being like, ‘Just so you know, it’s not normally like this. We normally have a lot more time.’ Because we were matching our voices to already colored animation.”
What Does This Mean for Rick and Morty’s Future?
Belden then opened up about how that has changed as well, “It was already cut, so it was our job to kind of match that timing, which adds an extra layer of difficulty on top of doing this new voice that we’re still trying to perfect. Now it’s Season 8. There are animatics. We have a lot more flexibility, a lot more time as Ian said. I’m thinking that is visible and audible, when you’re watching Season 8.” But in terms of performing thus far, they haven’t had the chance to record together as of yet.
“We are not doing these jobs alone. We have our producers, our directors, sometimes our writers, our sound engineers, wonderful people who are listening in at everything we do, and guiding us along the way. But we have to build a rapport outside of work,” Cardoni explained. “So Harry and I have become really close friends, doing the convention circuit and meeting fans has been a great way to do that. But, when we actually record, we’re just imagining that that banter and that relationship. So we’ve had to fill in the blanks a little bit.”
The post Rick and Morty Stars Reveal How Much Has Changed Since Joining the Show (Exclusive) appeared first on ComicBook.com.
