Rick and Morty's most controversial scenes as comedy celebrates 10 years

03 December 2023 , 07:00

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Rick and Morty is 10 (Image: Adult Swim))

As Rick and Morty celebrates its tenth birthday, we're looking back at some of the most shocking scenes that left fans gobsmacked.

The show, also available on Netflix, tells the story of Rick, a boozy sociopath scientist who lives with his daughter Beth's family. Besides inventing gadgets, he takes his well-meaning but dim grandson Morty on wild space adventures.

First hitting our screens in December 2013, the show started as a Back to the Future spoof and has since entertained viewers for six seasons. The two main characters are voiced by writer and producer Dan Harmon and co-creator Justin Roiland.

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Rick and Morty has had a number of controversial moments

However, Justin was axed from the popular cartoon earlier this year after being accused of serious domestic abuse and false imprisonment, charges he strongly denies. "Adult Swim has ended its association with Justin Roiland," said a statement on the official Rick and Morty Twitter account.

Despite the controversy surrounding the series, to mark the tenth anniversary, we're revisiting some of the most contentious scenes from the show.

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Rick tries to end his life

Rick and Morty aren't afraid to take the show to dark places, but when the scientist broke up with his partner Unity, we saw a new low point. Rick's wild night out ends with him trying to end his own life in a heart-wrenching scene set to Chaos Chaos' "Do You Feel It?".

Morty meets Mr Jellybean

Fans found the Mr Jellybean episode traumatic (netflix)

An episode called Meeseeks and Destroy is one of the most traumatic episodes from the series, according to viewers. While on a traditional adventure with his grandfather, Morty gets cornered by the perverted and forceful ruler of the local village called Mr Jellybean.

There is no comedy in this scene, and Morty has to brutally fight back to save himself. Addressing the stomach-turning scene in question, Justin explained that viewers were "supposed to be shocked and absolutely hate this jellybean," and that he, Harmon, and Ridley "wrote it to be a serious scene."

He also noted that he took extra care to "make sure this scene was not animated in a way that would play for laughs."

Rick & Morty mock national tragedies

Rick And Morty received backlash over 9/11 joke

In an episode titled Promortyus, Rick and Morty wreak havoc in a city full of aliens who had captured them. They stop their destruction when they notice buildings resembling Earth's Twin Towers.

Rick and Morty decide not to destroy the building but instead "commit a Pearl Harbour." The characters express relief that they "didn't stoop that low."

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]

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