Rick and Morty season 4 finale confirms major fan theory

Clone Beth and Rick in an image from Rick and Morty season 4
(Image credit: Adult Swim)

Despite swerving the serialised format recently, Rick and Morty season 4 brought a handful of overarching plot threads together in a finale that confirmed one of the show’s biggest theories. Not only that, but the season 4 closer also re-introduced a fan favourite character – which could have serious ramifications for Rick and Morty season 5 (and beyond).

Spoilers for the Rick and Morty season 4 finale follow

Remember Clone Beth? The ninth episode of season 3 (way, way back in the halcyon days of 2017) saw Morty’s mother faced with a choice: stay with her family or have a clone take her place so she could travel the universe.

Until now, it was left as a cliffhanger. Season 4’s finale, “Star Mort Rickturn of the Jerri”, changed all that. The episode begins by revealing that the OG Beth was out in space blowing up tyrants and getting on Most Wanted lists.

Or so we thought. The final few minutes of the episode – which saw Beth and Clone Beth both rejecting the idea of wanting to know which was which. Rick’s own Mind-Blowing memory is none the clearer, revealing that he played a shell game with the pair, switching them until it was impossible to tell who was the real deal.

So, who was the clone? We’ll probably never know, so fan theories can continue to rage across the multiverse.

What is certain, however, is the fate of Birdperson. He was brought back by Tammy as Phoenixperson, though Rick eventually ‘kills’ him and stores him in his garage with the intention of later fixing him.

Whatever happens next, expect season 5 to claw away at the edges of a Rick and Morty fan theory that won’t quite go away, and let a certain phoenix also rise from the ashes in the process.

Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.