Justin Roiland, co-creator and lead voice of Adult Swim’s Rick & Morty, has been charged with alleged felony domestic violence. Per NBC News, the charge stems from a criminal complaint filed in 2020 in Orange County, California.
Roiland, who is also the CEO of High on Life developer Squanch Games (and that game’s lead voice role) was charged with one felony count of domestic battery with corporal injury and another felony count of false imprisonment via menace, violence, and/or fraud.
The complaints were filed by an anonymous person who was dating Roiland at the time. Roiland was allegedly charged in 2020 and arrested late that year in August. He was later released on a $50,000 bond and plead not guilty to both charges.
Per the protective order filed in October 2020, Roiland is not allowed within 100 feet of the victim, and cannot harass, threaten, or surveil them. The protective order currently withholds details of the case from the public, including medical reports, interview recordings, and police reports.
At time of writing, a date for Roiland’s trial has not been set. Representatives for Roiland or Warner Bros. Discovery (parent company of Adult Swim) did not provide a comment to NBC News.
Game Developer has contacted Squanch Games and will update when a response is given.
Update (01/13/23): In a statement handed to Variety, Roiland’s attorney, T. Edward Welbourn, said the Squanch Games chief exec intends to clear his name and described media coverage of the situation as “inaccurate.”
“It is hard to overstate how inaccurate the recent media coverage of this situation has been,” said Welbourn. “To be clear, not only is Justin innocent but we also have every expectation that this matter is on course to be dismissed once the District Attorney’s office has completed its methodical review of the evidence. We look forward to clearing Justin’s name and helping him move forward as swiftly as possible.”