Dan Harmon used to talk. A lot. Arguably too much. But in recent years, since Community imploded and he was embroiled in a #MeToo scandal, Harmon has let his work — mostly Rick and Morty, but now also Krapopolis and a Community movie — do the talking. He did, however, give his first long-form interview in some time with the Hollywood Reporter to discuss his relationship with girlfriend/Jury Duty showrunner Cody Heller (the “woman of my dreams”), therapy (he’s a fan), and Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland, who has been accused of sexual assault.
The last time they interacted was through a text message in 2019. “He said things that he’d never said before about being unhappy,” Harmon revealed, “and I remember saying to him the last time we spoke in person, like, ‘I am worried about you, and I don’t know what to do about that except to give you all the string and also just say I’m scared that you’re not going to come back.’ But then this conversation became unprecedentedly confrontational.”
Harmon also discussed an NBC News report that Roiland used his fame to pursue Rick and Morty fans, some as young as 16.
“The easiest thing for me to say about Justin has been nothing. Easy because he isolated so well and easy because I’m nobody’s first choice as a judge of anything or anyone. This is where I’d love to change the subject to myself, to what a piece of crap I’ve been my whole public life,” he says. “I would feel so safe and comfortable making this about me, but that trick is worthless here and dangerous to others. It’s other people’s safety and comfort that got damaged while I obsessed over a cartoon’s quality. Trust has now been violated between countless people and a show designed to please them. I’m frustrated, ashamed and heartbroken that a lot of hard work, joy and passion can be leveraged to exploit and harm strangers.”
Rick and Morty returns for season seven, without Roiland, on October 10th.
(Via the Hollywood Reporter)