J. Michael Mendel death: The Simpsons and Rick and Morty producer dies at 54

Broadcaster Adult Swim said Mendel "absence will be felt by the entire community"
1/31
The Weekender

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and theatre ticket deals

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Emmy-winning animation producer J. Michael Mendel has died aged 54.

Mendel was best known for his work on cartoon series including The Simpsons and Rick and Morty.

His wife Juel Bestrop confirmed to the Hollywood Reporter that he died of natural causes at their home on Sunday night.

A statement from Adult Swim, the US network that broadcasts Rick and Morty, said that Mendel’s “fantastic talent and wit” will be “sorely missed.”

Mendel worked on The Simpsons from its launch until its tenth season
Fox

“All of us at Adult Swim are devastated by the untimely passing of Mike Mendel,” a spokesperson said.

“Mike was the heart of the Rick and Morty production family, his fantastic talent and wit will be sorely missed.

“Mike was a universally respected Emmy-winning producer with over 25 years in the industry, who guided and supported a generation of artists, writers and creators and his absence will be felt by the entire community.

He later worked as a line producer on Rick and Morty

“Our deepest condolences go out to his family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time.”

Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland also mourned the loss of his “friend, partner and line producer in a Twitter post.

“I am devastated,” he wrote. “My heart breaks for his family. I don’t know what I’m going to do without you by my side Mike. I’m destroyed.”

Mendel joined The Simpsons as an associate producer in 1989 for its series launch, having previously worked on Fox’s The Tracey Ullman Show.

He won Emmys for his work on the show in 1995, 1997 and 1998.

He later joined forces with Roiland to serve as line producer on Rick and Morty from 2013 to 2017, and received a fourth Emmy in 2018.

He is survived by his wife, his son and his daughter.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT