If there's one thing that "Rick and Morty" loves to do, it's riff on pop culture. Some of the best episodes of the Adult Swim series are based on iconic sci-fi movies or other things happening in our world. It feels like that's a trend Season 8 will lean into heavily, as Dan Harmon recently confirmed to CinemaBlend there's no end in sight for the comedy. So, how do they figure out which things to parody and which to leave alone? Surprisingly, "South Park" factors into their decision-making.
I spoke to Harmon and showrunner Scott Marder ahead of "Rick and Morty's" arrival on the 2025 TV schedule, and I asked about how they decide what's relevant for the show to riff on, especially when they're writing seasons of the series a couple of years before they air on television. Harmon explained the process behind pitches in the writers' room, and how they use "South Park" as a measuring stick to what they should and shouldn't be going after.
00:00If somebody pitched me, we have like a South Park rule, which is South Park can can let's not let's not play a South Park game that because South Park can do it faster and better than us.
00:14So if it is one thing for, you know, the thing you're referring to is like, oh, they're in squid game outfits.
00:20So it's a direct reference. And it's sometimes it's hard to predict this.
00:23But I think that if when something is so culturally impacting, then we go like, well, it's going to be timeless no matter what, or it's going to feel like a timely reference.
00:32But people will if you get it or don't. So it doesn't hinge on it.
00:37Whereas like we would never I think our rule would be if somebody were to pitch, you know, I think that this should be an episode about I got Justin Baldoni, like I whatever the thing.
00:52And we would be like, it's like, let's not lose a South Park contest by addressing something that is so energized right now.
01:00We won't make our stories about that stuff. We might make references to what we hope are kind of timeless, classic kind of pop cultural things.
01:08I'd say that's absolutely the case. Every once in a blue moon, we'll we'll tap something and we'll be like, we should really think about this because like we've already written season 10.
01:17But like, for instance, sometimes we're like, how impactful is that idea going to be when this airs in 2028 or whenever it's going to air?
01:24We're like, that's very far away from the seed of that idea that got us excited about it. Is that going to be as exciting?
