Rick and Morty fans were treated to a major surprise in Season 8, Episode 7, titled “Ricker Than Fiction”, as DC Studios CEO James Gunn and filmmaker Zack Snyder appeared as animated versions of themselves — playing exaggerated, satirical roles in the latest meta-adventure.
According to executive producer Scott Marder, both Gunn and Snyder were enthusiastic about participating in the episode, which pokes fun at Hollywood blockbusters, studio execs, and fan culture. “They were good sports,” Marder said, noting that both creators are genuine fans of the show and laughed off even the sharpest jokes.
In the episode, Rick and Morty confront James Gunn at the Warner Bros. lot over the creative direction of their favorite fictional franchise, Maximum Velocitree. Using Rick’s “Movie-lizer” device, the duo rewrites the film themselves, getting sucked into a chaotic cinematic world — and eventually outsmarting Gunn by creating a better ending.
Snyder appears later in the episode to poke fun at both himself and Gunn’s vision of Superman, joking, “He’s the Man of Steel, not the Man of Conversation. Do more shots of him punching!”
Ultimately, Gunn’s character steals Rick’s rewritten movie and presents it to Warner Bros. as a potential industry-changing breakthrough — only to be comically killed by a weapon named “Sundae.” Despite this, Marder hinted that Gunn’s character could return in future episodes now that he’s part of the Rick and Morty canon.
Marder revealed that the idea for the Movie-lizer had been in development for some time. Originally imagined as a “Book-alizer” focused on Jerry writing a novel, it evolved into a satire of Hollywood franchises like Transformers and Fast & Furious.
He also praised both directors’ enthusiasm, sharing that Gunn recorded his voice lines the morning after wrapping Superman, while Snyder was so excited he asked to do even more for the show. Series co-creator Dan Harmon personally wrote part of their dialogue, particularly their exchange about Superman.
“It was just cool to hear such enthusiasm from him,” Marder said of Snyder, joking that a “Snyder cut” of the episode would be a fun idea.
The episode playfully comments on fan entitlement and the illusion that making blockbuster stories is easy — showing that even Rick and Morty can’t fix Hollywood without consequences.
