Rick and Morty Spinoff Teaser Promises X-Files Intrigue With a National Treasure Twist
Eight seasons in, Rick and Morty remains the 21st century’s most propulsive idea engine—fewer episodes than its rivals, but a nonstop torrent of fresh concepts and audacious problem‑solving that keeps it miles ahead.
Rick and Morty just keeps multiplying. Fresh off last year’s anime spinoff and that Vindicators web series, the show is now teeing up another offshoot built around one of its best side characters: the President. Yes, Keith David’s President Curtis is getting his own series, and the first teaser lays out exactly what this thing is.
The setup (and why Adult Swim is doing this)
Animated hits tend to measure success in spinoffs as much as episodes. SpongeBob has two. Family Guy is lining up its second. Rick and Morty is about to outpace them with a trio: 2024’s Rick and Morty: The Anime, the short-form digital series Vindicators 2, and now President Curtis. This one also leans straight into the main show’s DNA instead of going totally off-book.
The teaser, translated
The clip is a White House address where President Curtis casually announces he killed Paul Bunyan. Yes, that Paul Bunyan — the giant lumberjack with the big blue ox. Then Rick and Morty pop in to basically pitch the show for us: Morty says he’s "out there, doing his own thing," Rick adds "I guess he does X-Files stuff, monster hunting," and Morty tags it with "National Treasure."
So the premise is crystal clear: President Curtis working standalone, case-of-the-week missions that mash up paranormal threats with Founding Fathers puzzle-solving. X-Files meets National Treasure is a ridiculous combo that somehow fits this universe. The Paul Bunyan namedrop also hints we might see more American folklore get dragged into it — think Johnny Appleseed, Bigfoot, and other campfire staples.
"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 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."
Who’s in it and when it hits
- Keith David returns as President Curtis.
- Series regulars joining him: Jim Rash (Community) and Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine).
- Rick Sanchez showing up here and there feels likely, but nothing’s confirmed yet.
- Premiering July on Adult Swim, timed to play alongside the final episodes of Rick and Morty Season 9.
Bottom line: this is a true spinoff, not a side quest — same world, same chaotic energy, but through Curtis’s POV. If the team can juggle an anime experiment and a Vindicators detour, turning American myths and monsters into presidential errands for Keith David sounds like a layup.