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Across its eight seasons, Rick and Morty has been one of the most propulsive and creative animated shows of the 21st century. Other shows may have more episodes or more seasons, but few can lay claim to having as many distinct ideas and creative ways to solve problems as Rick and Morty. A major hallmark of most successful animated shows has always been not just how many episodes they have in the end, but how many spinoff shows they managed to create. SpongeBob SquarePants has two spinoffs to its name, and Family Guy is set to get its second soon. Now, Rick and Morty is about to surpass them.
Fresh off Rick and Morty: The Anime from 2024, and following the short-form digital series Vindicators 2, Rick and Morty has rolled out the first teaser for its next upcoming spinoff series, President Curtis. Featuring Keith David reprising his role as the President of the United States, the first teaser for the new series not only confirms that the series is pulling itself directly from the main show in a big way, but also reveals to the audience exactly what the plot of the series will be.
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Rick and Morty’s President Curtis Spinoff Reveals First Teaser
In the short clip, David’s President Curtis delivers a surprising announcement from the White House, confirming he killed Paul Bunyan, the mythical folk hero that Americans know well as a giant lumberjack with a big blue ox. From there, Rick and Morty themselves detail what the pitch for the series appears to be, with Morty saying that he’s “out there, doing his own thing” and Rick adding, “I guess he does X-Files stuff, monster hunting.” Morty adds the cherry on top to what is the clear throughline for President Curtis, a two-word reply: “National Treasure.”
Based on this quick tease, it’s clear that the pitch for President Curtis is that David’s beloved character will have standalone episodes that combine these two wildly different stories. X-Files meets National Treasure sounds nuts on its face, but if anyone can pull it off, it’s clearly the team behind Rick and Morty. The Paul Bunyon namedrop may also be a tease for what other American myths might be central to the story, perhaps leaving room for the likes of Johnny Appleseed or Bigfoot to make appearances.
“President Curtis has always been one of our favorite characters to write — he’s the only person in the multiverse who can go toe-to-toe with Rick and still hold office,” co-creators Dan Harmon and James Siciliano previously said. “Now we finally get to go on sci-fi missions from Curtis’ point of view. And with Keith David leading the charge, it’s going to be a wild ride.”
Keith David is set to be joined in his own animated series by Jim Rash (Community) and Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) as part of the regular voice cast for the show. One assumes that Rick Sanchez will make sporadic appearances as well, but that has yet to be confirmed. President Curtis is set to premiere on Adult Swim this July, arriving just in time to air alongside the final episodes of Rick and Morty Season 9.
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