New X-Files Meets Rick & Morty Sci-Fi Series Is Conquering HBO Max

Adult Swim Published Jul 31, 2026, 4:18 PM EDT Adam has been writing in the entertainment news space for over a decade. Beginning his career of covering film and TV at CinemaBlend, he has also appeared on The Flash Podcast and done several radio spots. Sign in to your ScreenRant account The new sci-fi series that blends The X-Files with Rick and Morty is already a big hit on HBO Max. It’s been almost a week since the Rick and Morty spinoff President Curtis premiered on Adult Swim. While new episodes of its predecessor take a little while to become available on streaming, new episodes of President Curtis are added to HBO Max the day after airing on the Cartoon Network programming block. Even with only one episode released, the spinoff is already dominating on the platform. According to Flixpatrol, President Curtis is ranked seventh on HBO Max’s Top 10 TV Shows. It rests between 90 Day Fiancé and 90 Day Fiancé: The Last Resort, both of which hail from TLC. Meanwhile, Rick and Morty rests in second place on the same chart, between HBO’s House of the Dragon and TLC’s Baylen Out Loud. Other listed shows include Stuart Fails to Save the Universe in fourth place, Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiess in fifth place, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver in ninth place, and A Killer Among Friends in 10th place. Adult Swim President Curtis' streaming success is accompanied by the show’s largely positive critical reception. ScreenRant’s review of President Curtis gave the spinoff a score of seven out of 10 stars, noting that while it “does not live up to the high bar of Rick and Morty,” it “has room to be more experimental and confrontational in a way that suits Dan Harmon's humor” rather than simply play with “similar quirky missions and super technologies.” President Curtis places Keith David’s title character on center stage over 10 years after he debuted in the Rick and Morty season 2 episode “Get Schwifty.” The series follows him and his staff combating extraterrestrial, supernatural, and interdimensional threats that Rick Sanchez and Morty Smith don’t care to handle. David is joined by Jim Rash as Francis O’Doyle, a half-leprechaun Secret Service special agent, and Stephanie Beatriz as Roe Banks, Curtis’ cyborg chief of staff. Ian Cardoni and Harry Belden also reprised Rick and Morty, respectively, in the first episode. Rick and Morty co-creator Dan Harmon created President Curtis with James Siciliano, who was a producer on the former series from season 4 to season 8. This is the third onscreen Rick and Morty spinoff, following behind the web series Vindicators 2 and Rick and Morty: The Anime, and President Curtis has already been renewed fo season 2. The franchise also encompasses various comic book series, short films, and video games, and Rick and Morty themselves cameoed in 2021’s Space Jam: A New Legacy. Just like most of Rick and Morty's seasons, President Curtis season 1 comprises 10 episodes. They air Sundays at 11:30 p.m. ET on Adult Swim before dropping on HBO Max. Rick and Morty season 9 concluded on July 26, the same day that President Curtis premiered. In addition to the flagship series being renewed through to season 12, there’s also a Rick and Morty movie in development that will be directed by Jacob Hair, though it’s unclear if it will be a theatrical or streaming release. Release Date July 27, 2026 Cast Special Agent Francis O'Doyle Danielle Uhlarik Polish Banks Directors Fill Marc Sagadraca Creator(s) Dan Harmon, James Siciliano