Rick & Morty Debuts New Voice Actors But Doesn't Tell Us Who They Are

By Andrew Sanford | TV | September 26, 2023 |

By Andrew Sanford | TV | September 26, 2023 |

There has been a lot of voice actor replacement in animation in recent years. Hank Azaria was replaced by veteran actor Alex Désert as the voice of Carl Carlson on The Simpsons. Jenny Slate stepped down as the voice of Missy Foreman-Greenwald on the Netflix show Big Mouth with the hilarious and busy-as-hell Ayo Edebiri. Harry Shearer stopped playing Dr. Hibbert in favor of legendary voice actor Kevin Richardson on, you guessed it, The Simpsons. These changes were all proudly announced as a way to do the right thing and have actors from underrepresented backgrounds voice characters from those same backgrounds.

It helps that the actors who were replaced were mostly on board with the change (I’m looking at you, Shearer). When a voice actor is forced out for, say, being a giant creep and have support from waves of some of the worst people to infect the internet (looking at you, Musk), a different approach is needed.

Justin Roiland has been replaced as the voice of Rick & Morty after having domestic violence charges filed against him. I have already written about how the show has hidden the identities of the new voice actors. I assume that their identities are being withheld so they can avoid harassment. I also assumed that we wouldn’t hear them until the show premiered. That is no longer the case. In a new trailer for Rick & Morty Season 7, we hear Roiland’s replacements for the first time.

I am a fan of Rick & Morty and have been watching it since The Simpsons gave the titular characters a couch gag cameo. The new voices sound spot on. I don’t think they’re exact, nor should they be, but the energy and cadence are there. The spirit of the show is as alive as ever. That is due in no small part to the fact that the show is more than just Rick and Morty. Yes, I love the two leads, but the supporting cast, voiced immaculately by talents like Spencer Grammer, Chris Parnell, and Sarah Chalke, enrich the show and keep it from being a one-joke wonder.

I will be happy when the new voice actors behind Rick and Morty can get their flowers (as the children say). Until then, I’m at peace not knowing their identities. The show will be what it is. Roiland was not the “heart” of the show (only an idiot would say that). Rick & Morty is a team effort, so they went and found some team players.