Sorry to Tell You This, but 'Rick and Morty' Is Not on Netflix and Won’t Be Anytime Soon
Updated April 21 2020, 4:37 p.m. ET
When Netflix tweeted out that Season 4 of Rick and Morty is now available on the streaming platform, fans of the famed animated series were more than a little excited. And more than a little disappointed when they couldn't find it. The problem? The tweet wasn't sent out by Netflix's U.S. account. It was tweeted out by the Australia and New Zealand account.
And they weren't the only ones. Netflix's India, Portugal, South Africa, Turkey, and many others tweeted that the fourth season had just dropped. U.S. and Canadian fans aren't exactly thrilled that Rick and Morty is not available on their Netflix and they are definitely letting Netflix know.
Rick and Morty is not on Netflix in the U.S. and the outrage is apparent.
Look, if there is any fandom you don't mess with, it's Rick and Morty's. We all remember the Great Szechuan Sauce Riots of 2017, when fans were promised the sauce after its mention on the show. McDonald's brought the discontinued sauce back for one day in October and grossly underestimated how many people would show up. When they inevitably ran out, fans rioted in real life and online.
Ironically, the sauce came back for one day in 2018 and McDonald's had significantly more packets available. And the fans that got to try it then complained that it was actually pretty gross.
At this point, Netflix should know that if a Rick and Morty fan says, "Show me what you got," you better deliver. So when they said, "Show me Rick and Morty," your best decision is to show it to them. Instead fans outside the U.S. and Canada were shown the new season and the rest of us were left in the dark. Season 4 is on Netflix in over 30 countries, or at least the first five episodes of it are.
Why can't the U.S. or Canada get Rick and Morty?
Unfortunately, back in 2015, Hulu and Turner Broadcasting signed a multi-year deal that gave Hulu the exclusive rights to stream programming from Turner's channels, including Adult Swim. As far as Adult Swim goes, they were given the rights to previously released seasons, but not current ones.
So if Hulu has exclusivity, why do other countries' Netflix get Rick and Morty? It's because, in other countries, Hulu doesn't exist. Hulu is currently only available in the US. So the Turner-Hulu deal can't exist in other countries since Netflix doesn't have Hulu to compete with them there. As far as Canada goes, it might not be available there because there are plans for a Hulu expansion to Canada in the near future.
When will Rick and Morty Season 4 come to Hulu?
There's good news and bad news. Turner Broadcasting was owned by AT&T. There's a whole bunch of legal issues that are leading to Turner being dissolved, but the bare bones of the story are the Turner and HBO are both connected by AT&T so Adult Swim's programming, namely Rick and Morty will soon come to HBO Max.
HBO Max and Hulu will get Season 4 at the same time, which is expected to be five months after the season finale airs on Adult Swim. It's going to be a while for fans without cable to catch up on the new season. Currently, three episodes are available to stream on Adult Swim's website but the last two require a cable subscription.