cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/7805714

In the years following the 2013 debut of Adult Swim’s cartoon phenomenon “Rick and Morty,” its star and co-creator Justin Roiland became a titan of the animation and video game industry and a rock star of youth counterculture. His artistic style and caricatures became ubiquitous in cannabis culture, and his career expanded into producing other animated series, creating NFTs and leading a virtual reality gaming studio. In 2017, a “Rick and Morty” collaboration with McDonald’s led to such a viral frenzy that police had to be called to at least two locations.

But as he partied with Los Angeles’ superstars and traveled the country for conventions, he also found he could use his fame to strike up conversations and develop relationships with young fans, including some who were underage. This is according to interviews with 11 women and nonbinary people who shared thousands of messages with Roiland from 2013 to 2022 — with nine of the people saying he turned the exchanges sexual. Of those nine people, three said they were 16 when they started talking to Roiland. To corroborate their stories, the 11 women and nonbinary people also shared pictures, videos, social media posts, emails, and plane ticket and Uber receipts with NBC News.

Warning: Lengthy and graphic details

  • Granixo@feddit.cl
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    1 year ago

    The guy literally has spent 95% of his work time doing filler for R&M since Season 3, and now this?

  • Franzia@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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    1 year ago

    So where is Dan Harmon in all of this?

    https://archive.ph/OZqU2

    NYT: Roiland was removed from Rick & Morty in January. Show has a 70 episode contract so will continue… 7 fucking seasons now? Holy shit I actually stopped watching a lot longer ago than I had thought.

    Variety: Dan Harmon 2023

    Dan Harmon is making a new Fox show called Krapopolis, an adult animated comedy set in ancient greece. Sounds to me like it is not strike-breaking, because the show was ordered and written back in 2022.

    I’m really disappointed this motherfucker got a show in the first place. It seemed sketch as fuck to me from the get-go. Did Dan make this opportunity happen for him? Am I just being cynical? I guess most animated shows now are not made by shitty people.

    • squirrel@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOPM
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      1 year ago

      Several of the people Roiland sexted with were underage. That’s illegal, even when not counting all the other stuff Roiland did. Controversial opinion, but maybe people should not commit crimes.

      • Franzia@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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        1 year ago

        You’re right, of course and this ia fucked. However, contrarian here, 16 is legal in Europe, and there are hundreds of songs that go more or less like “She was only Seventeen”

        • squirrel@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOPM
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          1 year ago

          Sure, but what the article describes is something other than a romantic relationship: Roiland flirted with lots of people some 20 years younger than himself and told all of them how much he loved them and so on and so forth. That’s far from “rockstar has a consensual one-night stand with a fan”. It’s a pattern: A rich and famous guy manipulating people to get what he wants.