Fans have been waiting on new episodes of Rick and Morty since the irreverent animated comedy finished its fourth season last May. Though Adult Swim have yet to confirm release dates for season five, with episodes also expected to hit Hulu and Netflix, an update from writer Alex Rubens has suggested the return could happen much sooner than expected.
One of Rick and Morty’s main writers has just revealed work has already started on the popular sci-fi cartoon’s seventh season.
The new update came as a shock for many fans, who still haven’t seen a single episode of the animated comedy’s fifth instalment.
Rubens took to Twitter with the announcement, which was met with a fair share of disbelief from his followers.
He wrote: “Am I allowed to say we started writing Rick and Morty Season 7? (If not we didn’t and I’m not).”
READ MORE: Rick and Morty: Dan Harmon shares exciting update on season five
The seventh season would be the fourth of a projected seven-season renewal after Adult Swim ordered 70 more episodes over an unknown number of instalments in May 2018.
With each season consisting of ten episodes, other than Rick and Morty’s 11-episode debut, the popular adult animation could run until its tenth season.
On Reddit, one fan quipped: “Can’t wait to watch it when it comes out in 4 years.”
News of Rick and Morty’s production being at least two seasons ahead of schedule certainly comes as a surprise as the series has become infamous for taking lengthy breaks between new episodes.
Most major television and film productions were hit hard by coronavirus delays last year.
Thankfully, animation is one medium that can still run smoothly when the staff are confined to their homes, so Rick and Morty fans shouldn’t expect any further delays.
Still, production on the most recent instalments took almost two years, with a long break in between two blocks of five episodes in season four causing further frustration amongst fans.
Though Adult Swim have yet to confirm, Rubens and Harmon’s optimistic updates have suggested season five could premiere as early as this year.
Sharing another update at last year’s convention, Harmon added: “Immediately after this panel, I’ll be going and reviewing an animatic for a late season five episode.
“And yet, we are very late [in the process of] writing season six.
“I’m looking at finales for both seasons and then also refining the finale of one and then the premiere of the other. So I can’t remember the differences.”
Hopefully Rick and Morty’s team can polish the final pieces of season five over the coming months and yet another painful wait for new content can come to an end soon.
Rick and Morty seasons 1-4 are available to stream on Netflix.
