After six years, the sketch was developed into Rick and Morty, a half-hour prime time show that was a hit for Adult Swim, receiving universal acclaim across all seasons.

Alongside the original television series, the characters of the show have been featured in a variety of media, including spin-offs, comic books, musical releases and video games.

[3] The formula of the series consists of juxtapositioning two conflicting scenarios: an extremely selfish, alcoholic grandfather dragging his grandson along for interdimensional adventures, intercut with domestic family drama,[2][4] while addressing the insignificance of human existence as compared to the size of the universe, with no recognizable divine presence, as described by H. P. Lovecraft's philosophy of cosmicism.

The characters of the series deal with existential dread and cosmic horror, either by asserting the utility of science over magic or by choosing a life in ignorant bliss.

[5] However, as Joachim Heijndermans of Geeks notes, none of the characters appear able to handle the absurd and chaotic nature of the universe, as Jerry gets by through denial while Rick is a "depressed, substance-addicted, suicidal mess".

[9] Matthew Bulger of The Humanist noted that the creators of the series were trying to communicate the message that we need to focus on human relationships and not preoccupy our minds with unanswerable questions, in order to find a sense of purpose and live a better life.

Thereunder, Troy Patterson of The New Yorker notes that Rick and Morty "supplies an artful answer to the question of what follows postmodernism: a decadent regurgitation of all its tropes, all at once, leavened by some humanistic wistfulness.

"[12] Sean Sebastian of Junkee says that the show can be both hilarious and deeply disturbing at the same time as it excels at the "intersection between big ideas, flippancy and wit.

Roiland, then a producer on reality programming, began submitting shock value—"sick and twisted" pilots to the festival a year after its launch, in 2004, eliciting confused reactions from the audience to which Harmon took a liking, leading to the two beginning an ongoing collaboration.

[24] Harmon would later dub the shorts "a bastardization, a pornographic vandalization" of what Rick and Morty would ultimately represent, despite their positive critical reception.

[2] Roiland initially wanted the show's run time to consist of one eleven-minute segment, but Adult Swim pushed for a half-hour program.

[4] Harmon felt the best way to extend the voices into a program would be to build a family around the characters, to which decision Adult Swim development executive Nick Weidenfeld suggested that Rick be made to be Morty's grandfather.

[25] Harmon described the series as a cross between Matt Groening's two shows The Simpsons and Futurama, balancing family life with heavy science fiction.

"[8] Rick and Morty has received universal acclaim, holding an approval rating of 94% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes for the entire series.

The couch gag of "Mathlete's Feat" is a crossover with Rick and Morty, featuring the titular duo crashing into the Simpson family.

[41] Following the series premiere of Vindicators 2 in July 2022, Rick and Morty spin-off showrunner Sarah Carbiener expressed interest in a further spin-off ses potentially being produced about Dr. Wong (voiced by Susan Sarandon), tentatively entitled In Treatment with Dr. Wong, featuring "different Rick and Morty characters [doing] the five-episodes-a-week therapy session.

"[39] From 2017 to 2019, Adult Swim released a series of claymation short films called Rick and Morty: The Non-Canonical Adventures on YouTube.

[42] On March 29, 2020, an anime short film called Samurai & Shogun on Adult Swim's Toonami programming block and were promptly uploaded to the network's YouTube channel.

[46] On October 10, 2021, a fourth anime short film titled "The Great Yokai Battle of Akihabara" was released on YouTube and aired on Adult Swin the following day.

The 10 and a half minute animation has Japanese dialogue with English subtitles and continues with Yōhei Tadano and Keisuke Chiba voicing Rick and Morty respectively.

[62][63] The 11-episode first season of Rick and Morty was released by Warner Home Video on DVD (2-disc set) and Blu-ray (single BD-50 disc) on October 7, 2014.

[75] On March 16, 2018, Adult Swim released a music video directed by Juan Meza-León in which the series' eponymous characters embark on an adventure, while the song "Oh Mama" from the American hip hop duo Run the Jewels plays in the background.

[76] On June 22, 2016, Cryptozoic Entertainment released Total Rickall, a co-operative strategy card game based on the plot of the second-season episode of the same name, where players must determine which characters are real and which ones are parasites.

[85] Hot Topic has sold many licensed Rick and Morty products such as T-shirts, Boxer Briefs, Hats, socks, Tank tops, shoes, hoodies, and Sweatshirts.