Justin Roiland Controversy: Charges, NBC Investigation, and Studio Fallout

The Justin Roiland controversy refers to a cluster of allegations that surfaced publicly in January 2023 against the co-creator and lead voice of Rick and Morty: a previously sealed felony domestic violence case out of Orange County, a later NBC News investigation describing sexual misconduct with young fans, and reporting on toxic behavior at his studios. Within about two weeks of the charges becoming public, Roiland was cut from Rick and Morty, Solar Opposites, Koala Man, and Squanch Games, the video game studio he had founded. The criminal charges were later dismissed for insufficient evidence, but the professional separations held.

The Felony Domestic Violence Case

In May 2020, the Orange County District Attorney’s office charged Roiland with one felony count of domestic battery with corporal injury and one felony count of false imprisonment by menace, violence, fraud, or deceit.¹ The charges stemmed from an incident on or about January 19, 2020, involving a woman identified in court filings as Jane Doe who was dating Roiland at the time.² A police complaint stated the alleged conduct caused her a “traumatic condition.”³

Roiland was arrested and released on a $50,000 bond in August 2020.⁴ He pleaded not guilty that October. A protective order barred him from harassing, threatening, or surveilling the accuser, required him to stay at least 100 feet away, and ordered him to surrender any firearms.⁵ A conviction would have carried up to seven years in prison.³ The case was largely under seal until NBC News reported on it in January 2023.

On March 21, 2023, the Orange County District Attorney’s office dismissed both counts. Spokesperson Kimberly Edds said the office dropped the case “due to insufficient evidence to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt,” citing “additional information that came to light.”² The dismissal was not a finding of innocence; prosecutors concluded they could not meet their burden of proof.⁶ Roiland afterward posted on X calling the allegations lies.⁷

The NBC News Investigation Into Contact With Young Fans

In September 2023, after the criminal case had been dismissed, NBC News published a separate investigation based on interviews with 11 women and nonbinary people who said they had communicated with Roiland between 2013 and 2022. Nine said the exchanges turned sexual. Three said they were 16 when the contact began. Sources provided text messages, Discord messages, social media posts, emails, photos, videos, and travel receipts.⁸

The report said Roiland used dating apps and social media to initiate contact with young fans, often asking their age, location, and sexual orientation. Two said Roiland called them “jailbait” at 16, and he allegedly told a 16-year-old interested in game streaming that “once you turn 18 you just start cam whoring.”⁹ Several sources said he would drop contact while they were underage and resume once they turned 18.¹⁰

The most serious allegation involved a 20-year-old Boston woman who matched with Roiland on Tinder in March 2019 while he was in town for a gaming convention. She said he bought her drinks, took her shopping, and then at his hotel asked her to perform oral sex; when she declined, she said he persisted and pushed her head toward his crotch until she stopped resisting. NBC News verified she called a friend on her way home to describe what happened. In text messages months later, after she wrote that “verbal consent is [very] important,” Roiland responded: “S— yeah, I didn’t?? I’m really sorry! F—. That’s not cool at all — jeeeesus. That is not me whatsoever… I literally didn’t get consent??”⁸

Another woman, 19 at the time, told NBC News that in 2017 Roiland flew her to Los Angeles for a party at his home, coerced her into sexual acts with another woman during a hot tub gathering, and later had sex with her in front of the other person. She said he afterward sent her 14 messages containing the same pornographic image.¹⁰

Roiland’s attorney Andrew Brettler sent NBC News a letter calling the allegations “false and defamatory.” Brettler said the Boston woman later offered to sell Roiland pornographic videos and that Roiland felt “duped and taken advantage of,” and said the 2017 encounter was consensual and that Roiland was not responsible for what occurred between the woman and the other person.⁹ No criminal charges have been filed in connection with any of the allegations in the NBC News report.⁸

Workplace Conduct Reports

In February 2023, The Hollywood Reporter published an account of Roiland’s behavior at his studios drawn from former colleagues. The report alleged that Roiland paraded a porn star through the Rick and Morty writers room, openly discussed threesomes, and sent a “really creepy” late-night text to a female employee during the show’s third season asking her to come to his home. Former Mad magazine editor Allie Goertz said Roiland sent her pornographic GIFs and a graphic sexual request while she was working on a Rick and Morty concept album. Goertz told the outlet: “I really think that he, in a lot of ways, took advantage of someone who couldn’t have been a bigger fan.”¹¹

Cartoon Network conducted a formal investigation into Roiland’s workplace conduct in 2020. The outcome was never made public.¹² Colleagues told The Hollywood Reporter that Roiland had “no meaningful creative presence” on his shows beyond voice work for years, recording lines remotely and reportedly refusing direction.¹¹

How His Shows and Studio Responded

On January 24, 2023, Adult Swim said: “Adult Swim has ended its association with Justin Roiland.”¹³ Rick and Morty continued under co-creator Dan Harmon and showrunner Scott Marder. For Season 7, which premiered on October 15, 2023, the “created by” credit was removed from the title card, Ian Cardoni took over as Rick Sanchez, and Harry Belden took over as Morty Smith.¹⁴ An 80-episode renewal secured in 2018 extended the series through at least Season 10.¹⁵

Hulu followed on January 25, 2023, stating: “We have ended our association with Justin Roiland.”¹⁶ Solar Opposites and Koala Man continued without him. Instead of hiring a soundalike for Korvo on Solar Opposites, the production cast Dan Stevens, whose British accent gave the character a distinct new voice from Season 4 forward.¹⁷

The same day, Squanch Games said it had received Roiland’s resignation on January 16.¹⁶ The studio released the High on Life DLC High on Knife in fall 2023 without Roiland’s voice in any form.¹⁸

Rick and Morty Without Roiland

Dan Harmon told Rolling Stone he was “frustrated, ashamed, and heartbroken that a lot of hard work, joy, and passion can be leveraged to exploit and harm strangers.” He said his working relationship with Roiland had deteriorated years earlier, with Roiland largely absent from writing sessions after Season 3, and that their last meaningful exchange around 2019 was an “unprecedentedly confrontational” text thread. Harmon chose not to participate in casting the replacements, describing his distance as “denial.”¹⁹

Marder characterized Roiland’s departure as less seismic than it looked from outside. “When he left, he only really left by name,” Marder said, noting that Roiland’s creative contributions had been minimal for years.¹⁵ Cardoni and Belden have continued in their roles into later seasons.²⁰

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NBC News. Justin Roiland Rick and Morty Allegations Domestic Violence Charges
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Los Angeles Times. Justin Roiland Charges Dropped
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BBC News. Justin Roiland Domestic Violence Charges
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The Hollywood Reporter. Justin Roiland Domestic Violence Charges
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Los Angeles Times. Justin Roiland Rick and Morty Felony Domestic Violence
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Variety. Justin Roiland Domestic Violence Charges Dropped
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Forbes. Rick and Morty Replaces Voice Actor Justin Roiland
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NBC News. Justin Roiland Rick and Morty Fame Pursue Young Fans
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Variety. Justin Roiland Denies Report Alleged Sexual Assault Young Fans
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Rolling Stone. Rick and Morty Co-Creator Justin Roiland Accused Sexual Assault
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The Hollywood Reporter. Justin Roiland Animation Empire Implosion
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Vanity Fair. Justin Roiland Allegedly Engaged in Toxic Workplace Behavior
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The Hollywood Reporter. Adult Swim Ends Relationship With Justin Roiland
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ABC News Australia. Rick and Morty Returns With New Voices After Justin Roiland Fired
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Variety. Rick and Morty Season 7 Review
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Entertainment Weekly. Hulu Squanch Games Part Ways With Justin Roiland
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The Wrap. Dan Stevens Solar Opposites Replacement
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Animation World Network. Justin Roiland Will Not Return to Squanch Games High on Knife DLC
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Rolling Stone. Rick and Morty Co-Creator Dan Harmon Justin Roiland Accusations
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Polygon. Rick and Morty Season 9 Actor Interview