Rick & Morty: Every Mafia Movie Reference in Season 5, Episode 7

The seventh episode of Rick and Morty season 5, “Gotron Jerrysis Rickvangelion,” features the family in a gangster-based storyline, featuring plenty of references to classic mafia movies. The episode begins with Rick, Morty, and Summer headed to Boob World before being interrupted by an intergalactic fight with a Power Rangers-like beast, GoTron. As the crew returns home, Rick transforms into the Smith family Don, taking the characters through the rise and fall of gangsterdom.

Throughout the episode, Rick and Morty sees a battle for the references between popular gangster movies and several anime series. When the show isn’t paying tribute to The Godfather, Goodfellas, Scarface, they’re taking on Power Rangers personas with anime allies and futuristic machine villains. The episode also sees a terrifying return of Summer’s giant incest baby, which plays a role in the family’s defeat of GoTron.

“Gotron Jerrysis Rickvangelion” also sees a dynamic shift as Morty is booted out of the limelight and Summer takes over as grandpa Rick’s sidekick. No fear, the episode still assembles a variety of Rick and Morty versions that become involved in the family’s gangster plot. Here’s a breakdown of all the mafia movie references that make their way into season 5, episode 7 of Rick and Morty.

The Godfather

Not only are The Godfather films considered some of the best movies of all time, they typically take the cake for best mobster movies. Rick and Morty pays homage to the Corleone family throughout the episode, beginning with an upset Rick telling Morty he broke his heart, mirroring The Godfather Part II’s iconic heart-breaking moment between Michael and Fredo. Rick didn’t kill Morty by blowing him up on a canoe, but the show makes it clear he could have. Another Godfather Part II reference shows up when Summer, à la the Corleones’ consigliere Tom Hagen, helped Yo-Yo Rick cover up a murder as Hagen had for Senator Geary. Continuing with Summer’s Tom Hagen persona, she feels the same heartbreak when Rick fires her as Hagen felt when Michael demoted him from consigliere.

The most obvious connection to The Godfather is the meeting between The Five Families, or in Rick and Morty’s case, the five intergalactic versions of their own family. Each of The Five Family heads, all of whom are their family’s version of Rick, is inspired by an iconic mafia movie character, with Big Fat Rick emulating The Godfather’s Don Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando). As the next versions of Rick get their chance to air their thoughts, the fourth Rick, Hot Head Rick, was a clear parody of Vito’s son, Sonny Corleone, whose temper ended up being the death of him. To round off all the Godfather Easter eggs, Rick and Morty just needed to end the episode with Rick quitting the gangster life after Summer is shot outside the opera.

Goodfellas

For as long as he could remember, Morty always wanted to be a gangster. Rick and Morty’s season 5 episode kicks off the mafia storyline with Henry Hill’s notable opening voice-over narration in Goodfellas. The voice-over then switches to Summer, who becomes Rick and Morty’s Karen Hill, though Karen never had a giant incest baby. Once the mafia business starts going downhill for Rick and his family, Beth gives Morty $16,000 and tells him, “Now I gotta turn my back on you,” referencing when Paulie Cicero (Paul Sorvino) gave Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) $3,200 and uttered the same line.

Scarface

Al Pacino’s cocaine-obsessed mafia movie gets its first shoutout during the Five Ricks Family meeting, where Rickardo Montoya bears a striking resemblance to Scarface‘s Tony Montana. Rick and Morty then pays homage to a classic Scarface scene when the family arrives at a highly exclusive restaurant, decorated in the same fashion as Brian de Palma’s movie. To make the reference more clear, Summer walks in wearing a silver gown similar to the one Elvira (Michelle Pfeiffer) arrives in for dinner at the climactic restaurant scene.

Towards the end of “Gotron Jerrysis Rickvangelion,” Rick shifts his mafia movie persona from Michael Corleone to Tony Montana as he recreates one of the most iconic mafia movie scenes of all time. The family’s climactic battle against the GoTron family shows Rick’s cockpit looking exactly like Scarface‘s Tony Montana home, dual staircases included. In the final stand, Rick takes from Tony’s machine-gun shootout line, telling the GoTron to “say hello to my little me.”

Spaghetti

If there’s one entree that will make an appearance in an Italian mobster movie, it’s a gourmet pasta, hopefully with razor blade-sliced thin garlic. Spaghetti makes two appearances in Rick and Morty’s episode, once at the beginning where Beth and Jerry are eating, and again at the end of the episode when the family reminisces on their crazy mafia life. The final pasta scene echoes Henry Hill’s resolution in Goodfellas, being stuck in Witness Protection with an egg noodle and ketchup spaghetti that in no way compares to the ziti with meat gravy he was cooking for Michael. Pasta also serves as the beginning of The Godfather’s family life when a young Michael Corleone comes home to Clemenza explaining how to make a spaghetti dinner for 20 people.

Martin Scorsese Mafia Calling Cards

While certain actors like Al Pacino are well-known for being mafia actors, Martin Scorsese is the go-to mobster director. His classic films like Goodfellas, Casino, and The Irishman detail the old school gangster life that influenced countless films to follow. Scorsese’s films are known for incredible needle-drops, typically to The Rolling Stones, Cream, or classic ‘60s oldies. Rick and Morty’s season 5 episode drops the same type of songs to score the Smith family’s rise in the mafia. The series also documents Rick Sanchez’s reign in the same rise and fall sequence Scorsese used for his anti-hero mobsters. Rick and Morty’s dual voiceover narrations between Morty and Summer also parallel the tactic used in two of Scorsese’s iconic gangster movies, Goodfellas and Casino.

Real-Life Mobster References

Most of Rick and Morty‘s Easter eggs are pointed at cinema’s highly regarded mobster movies, but the show does slip in a few nods to real-life gangsters outside of those mentioned in Goodfellas. When outside of the nightclub, the brick wall is spraypainted with “Get Capowned,” referencing the 1920s crime boss Al Capone, whose nickname and persona inspired Scarface. Rick and Morty‘s “Gotron Jerrysis Rickvangelion,” episode also features a family head version of Rick named Little Ricky Wrap-It-Up, who doesn’t have a clear corresponding mobster movie character, but is found in real-life figures like Little Nicky Scarfo, Little Augie Pisano, and any of the notable smaller-sized mafia members.

About The Author

Jordan Williams
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Jordan Williams is a Movie/TV Feature Senior Staff Writer for Screen Rant. She graduated from the University of Oregon in 2020 with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Media Studies.

Jordan is based in Seattle, Washington and enjoys exploring the natural beauty the PNW has to offer. She runs on coffee and classic movies, taking pride in having watched every film on AFI’s 100 Greatest Films list and every Best Picture Oscar winner.

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