Which short film inspired Rick and Morty?

Rick and Morty was inspired by the short film The Real Animated Adventures of Doc and Mharti. Justin Roiland created the short in 2006 as a crude parody of Back to the Future’s Doc Brown and Marty McFly.

The short was made for Channel 101, a Los Angeles film festival co-founded by Dan Harmon. Its two characters were deliberately modeled on the famous time-traveling duo, but Roiland’s version used much more explicit and absurd humor. Although the original short was far removed from the eventual television series, it supplied the basic character relationship and vocal dynamic that became Rick and Morty.

When Adult Swim later approached Harmon about developing an animated series, Harmon contacted Roiland to ask whether he had an idea for a show. Roiland brought back the Doc and Mharti concept, renamed the characters Rick and Morty, and expanded their relationship into a family-centered science-fiction comedy. The finished series added Beth, Jerry, Summer, interdimensional travel, and a much broader emotional story.

A common mix-up is choosing House of Cosbys, another Roiland project. That series was part of his earlier work, but The Real Animated Adventures of Doc and Mharti is the direct precursor to Rick and Morty.