Was Elon Musk Really in ‘Rick and Morty’?
No one can expect things to be normal in any episode of Rick and Morty, which makes it continually popular with fans this year into a wild fourth season. One thing about the show is they don’t typically go the route of The Simpsons and have cameos from real people.
They did make one exception, though, only because the notable person they used happened to be friends with the show’s creators.
If anyone thought it was only a rumor Elon Musk appeared on Rick and Morty, it’s more than true. This wasn’t any ordinary cameo either. His particular cameo wasn’t as his usual self either, something only R and M fans will understand.
What were the details behind this bizarre appearance? Having him appear seemed apropos for the style of the show, not including celebrating Musk’s own mysteriousness.
An alternative reality Elon Musk
One would think Musk is more than ripe for being satirized to death by the Rick and Morty creative team. The creators (Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon) just so happen to be big fans of Musk and his scientific advancements. Musk has returned the friendship, leading to hangouts with Roiland and Harmon. Latter two later managed to convince Musk to do guest voice work playing himself.
While recorded a while ago, the episode just aired recently on Adult Swim as part of Season Four. In the episode, fans saw Rick and Morty encounter an alt-reality Musk who’s known as “Elon Tusk.”
Yes, the name is literal and has the animated guise of Musk wearing real tusks.
Earlier in the year, Musk changed his Twitter handle to “Elon Tusk” in celebration of his involvement, even though nobody knew what the reference meant at the time. It was a typical move by Musk, who always wants to stay mysterious and more than a little oddball.
Since Musk is a cannabis user, he might have had a history of watching Rick and Morty while fully imbibed.
Elon Tusk in the alt-reality isn’t much different from the real Musk
Any fan of this show must have realized any cameo from someone famous wasn’t going to be the usual. After finding Elon “Tusk”, Rick and Morty realize he’s the head of a company called Tuskla that uses tusks on all of his inventions.
Other than this, it was the same Elon Musk, proving the hilarious concept of one alternate universe possibly having one slight variation into the absurd. Anyone who really believes in alternate realities might think something just as crazy could truly exist. Regardless, the world of Rick and Morty is already like smoking cannabis with Musk himself.
There’s every reason to believe the creators of Rick and Morty have done exactly this with Musk based on the disturbingly surreal story lines they create each season. Not that anyone can argue it’s not the most creative animated show around.
Landing Musk might have been a major coup, but what does it portend for future celebrity cameos on the show? They’ve already brought in famous voices without necessarily portraying themselves.
‘Rick and Morty’ might turn into ‘The Simpsons’ after all
Those who’ve followed the show along from the beginning will know various celebrities have come on to voice specific guest-star characters. Everyone from Susan Sarandon to even Werner Herzog have done cameo voice work. Paul Giamatti is yet another upcoming.
None of these celebs have played a version of themselves, unlike Musk. Let’s assume this might change the longer Rick and Morty stays on the air. After all, it’s almost a pop culture privilege for a celeb to portray themselves on The Simpsons. Rick and Morty is almost on the same level now, making it more likely some notable will show up in an animated guise.
Then again, with Harmon and Roiland once saying John Lithgow turned them down vehemently, there may still be some trepidation by a few A-list stars based on how relentlessly weird the show continues to be.
