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'Rick and Morty' co-creator Justin Roiland says production on season 4 has already begun

Fans may have to wait till 2019 for the new episodes, especially if you take into consideration how the previous seasons have been spaced apart

'Rick and Morty' fans were left in a state of limbo over the show's status after the conclusion of season 3, with neither Justin Roiland nor Dan Harmon willing to give any conclusive details about the possibility of further seasons. Fears that the show had been canceled were put to rest in emphatic fashion this past May when Adult Swim announced that the popular adult animated science fiction comedy series had been renewed for 70 further episodes.

The much-awaited fourth season has taken one further step towards becoming a reality with Roiland announcing that it has gone into production. Speaking to Polygon in an interview, the co-creator and voice of both Rick and Morty, said: "It’s exciting, it’s a little surreal. Even just being in the writer’s room for half the day every day this week, the ideas are... It’s going to be great."

Fans of the show will be familiar with Dan Harmon as well. Despite his obvious talents for the creative side and humor, as evidenced by the likes of 'Community' and 'Harmonquest,' Harmon is known to be difficult to work with and has had numerous problems with procrastination, as well as alcoholism.

Falling out with various members of the cast and crew is not uncommon either. But Roiland says such issues are unlikely this time around.

"Harmon is in great spirits, we have a great writer’s room. We want the episodes to stay good, but we do also want to try to turn them around a little quicker now that we have this big order, I think it gives us the ability to be faster," he said.

However, fans will have to wait till 2019 for the new episodes, especially if you take into consideration how the previous seasons have been spaced apart. The gap between season 1 and season 2 was roughly 1.5 years, with 2 and 3 being released after a similar gap.

Also, if the previous seasons are an indication — season 1, 2, and 3 had 11, 10, and 10 episodes respectively — the 70-episode order means that 'Rick and Morty' is set for seven further seasons. It took 1,913 days to air the first 31, which adds up to one episode every 61.7 days. At the same pace, it would take 4,319 days for 70 episodes, meaning that the last episode of the series will air in 2030. 

With 70 episodes now in the making, Roiland says the days of such delays are now in the past. "We’re not going to do these long breaks, these chasms in between seasons anymore. We’re going to schedule vacation time and just keep the machine going. It’s going to be really cool," he said.