Is Adult Swim owned by Warner Bros. Discovery?

Yes. Adult Swim is a programming block and brand within Cartoon Network, which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ: WBD). Warner Bros. Discovery was formed in April 2022 through the merger of AT&T's WarnerMedia unit and Discovery Inc. Prior to that merger, Adult Swim was part of WarnerMedia (formerly Turner Broadcasting, acquired by Time Warner in 1996, acquired by AT&T in 2018).

Is Adult Swim a separate channel from Cartoon Network?

Adult Swim began as a programming block that shared Cartoon Network's linear cable channel frequency, airing on the same channel from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. As of 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery has begun separating Adult Swim and Cartoon Network as distinct channel offerings on major cable and streaming platforms, though the two continue to share production infrastructure and creative leadership at Cartoon Network Studios in Atlanta.

Who created Adult Swim?

Adult Swim was created by Mike Lazzo, who served as senior vice president at Cartoon Network, along with producer Keith Crofford. Lazzo developed the concept of a late-night adult programming block in the late 1990s and oversaw Adult Swim's launch on September 2, 2001. Lazzo left Cartoon Network in 2018 after 30 years with the network.

What is the most successful Adult Swim show?

Rick and Morty, created by Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland, is Adult Swim's most commercially successful original series. It has won two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Animated Program, generated hundreds of millions of dollars in merchandise revenue, and has been renewed for additional seasons. The show continues under Adult Swim following the departure of co-creator Justin Roiland in January 2023. Other long-running Adult Swim originals include Robot Chicken (premiered 2005) and The Eric Andre Show (premiered 2012).

Is Adult Swim on a streaming service?

Yes. Adult Swim content, including Rick and Morty, Robot Chicken, The Eric Andre Show, and other original series, is available on Max, Warner Bros. Discovery's streaming platform. Some older Adult Swim content is also available on third-party platforms under licensing arrangements. The adultswim.com website also provides free access to selected clips and full episodes of some series.

Media & Entertainment

Who Owns Adult Swim?

Adult Swim is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, the American media conglomerate formed in April 2022 through the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery Inc. Adult Swim operates as a programming block and distinct brand on Cartoon Network, which is itself part of Warner Bros. Discovery's cable network portfolio. The brand is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, alongside Cartoon Network Studios.

Parent Company

Warner Bros. Discovery

Founded

2001

Status

Private

Headquarters

Atlanta, Georgia, United States

freenicheNorth Americaall-agesOfficial Website

Who Owns Adult Swim?

Parent Company: Warner Bros. Discovery
Ownership Type: Subsidiary
Company Type: Publicly Traded
Stock Ticker: NASDAQ: WBD

Brand	Parent Company	Ownership Type
Adult Swim	Warner Bros. Discovery	Subsidiary

Where to Buy

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Adult Swim on Amazon

History of Adult Swim

Founded: 2001
Founders: Mike Lazzo, Keith Crofford

Cartoon Network launched as a 24-hour cable channel in 1992 under Turner Broadcasting, devoted to animated programming for children and families. By the late 1990s, Turner's programming team began exploring ways to utilize Cartoon Network's overnight hours with content aimed at older viewers.

Mike Lazzo, a senior vice president at Cartoon Network, conceived the idea of a late-night adult programming block. The model drew on the success of Comedy Central and Fox's late-night animated content and on the existing Cartoon Network audience that had grown up watching the channel in the early 1990s. Lazzo and his team developed an initial lineup that combined acquired anime titles (Cowboy Bebop, Inuyasha) with original animated shorts and series.

Adult Swim officially launched on September 2, 2001, as a two-hour programming block on Sunday nights, running from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. The debut lineup included Space Ghost Coast to Coast (a long-running Cartoon Network original repurposed for the adult block), Aqua Teen Hunger Force, The Brak Show, and Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law. The block's aesthetic was immediately distinctive: absurdist humor, minimal animation budgets, unconventional narrative structures, and a deliberate lo-fi visual sensibility.

Audience response was strong. Adult Swim expanded its schedule within its first year, adding more nights and extending into the small hours. By 2004, Adult Swim was available seven nights a week. A key format innovation was the "bump" between programming segments: short text-based title cards on colored backgrounds with irreverent messages, which became a signature element of the Adult Swim brand identity and were discussed and archived by fans.

Robot Chicken, created by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich, premiered in 2005 and became one of Adult Swim's most successful long-running originals. The Sarah Silverman Program (2007), The Eric Andre Show (2012), and Rick and Morty (2013) followed. Rick and Morty, created by Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland, became the most commercially significant original in Adult Swim's history, generating substantial merchandise revenue, mainstream cultural penetration, and one of Adult Swim's largest dedicated fanbases.

Adult Swim moved to a dedicated channel designation (separate from Cartoon Network) on some cable systems from approximately 2004, though it officially shared the channel frequency with Cartoon Network until 2024, when Warner Bros. Discovery separated them as distinct linear channels on most major cable and streaming platforms.

The post-2022 Warner Bros. Discovery era brought significant changes. The company implemented substantial cost cuts across all its media properties, resulting in staff reductions at Adult Swim and the cancellation of several series. Rick and Morty's production continued following the departure of co-creator Justin Roiland in January 2023 after domestic violence charges were filed against him; Adult Swim announced it would continue the series without Roiland, with his voice roles recast.

About Warner Bros. Discovery

What does Warner Bros. Discovery own?
Warner Bros. Discovery owns Max (streaming service), HBO, Warner Bros. film and TV studios, DC Comics, CNN, Discovery Channel, HGTV, Food Network, TLC, Animal Planet, TNT, TBS, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, Eurosport, and numerous other media brands. In June 2025, the company announced a plan to split into two companies: Warner Bros. (streaming/studios) and Discovery Global (linear networks).

Is Warner Bros. Discovery splitting up?
Yes. In June 2025, Warner Bros. Discovery announced a plan to separate into two independent publicly traded companies: Warner Bros. (streaming, studios, HBO/Max, DC Comics) and Discovery Global (linear TV networks including CNN, HGTV, Food Network, and TNT Sports). The split is expected to complete in mid-2026 and is structured to be tax-free.

What is Warner Bros. Discovery's annual revenue?
In FY2024, Warner Bros. Discovery reported revenue of approximately $39.3 billion, a 4.8% decline from FY2023. The company reported a net loss of approximately $11.5 billion, primarily due to a $9.1 billion non-cash goodwill impairment charge on its linear TV network assets.

Who is the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery?
David Zaslav serves as President and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery. He previously served as CEO of Discovery, Inc. before the 2022 merger and has led the combined company since its formation.

When was Warner Bros. Discovery formed?
Warner Bros. Discovery was formed on April 8, 2022, through the merger of WarnerMedia (which AT&T had acquired as Time Warner in 2018 and subsequently spun off) and Discovery, Inc.

What is Max?
Max is Warner Bros. Discovery's flagship streaming service, launched in May 2023 as a rebranded and combined version of HBO Max and Discovery+. Max offers HBO's premium scripted drama alongside Discovery's factual and lifestyle content. The service reached approximately 116 million global subscribers in 2024 and achieved full-year profitability in 2024.

Founded: 2022
Headquarters: New York, New York, USA
Company Type: Publicly Traded
Stock: NASDAQ: WBD
Revenue: approximately $39.3 billion (FY2024)
Employees: Approximately 35,000

Visit Warner Bros. Discovery website

View full company profile for Warner Bros. Discovery

Where Is Adult Swim Made / Based?

Headquarters: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Manufacturing / Operations: United States

Adult Swim Categories & Tags

Television Animation Cable Network Adult Animation Comedy American Brand

Adult Swim Sustainability & Ethics

Adult Swim does not publish standalone sustainability reports; environmental and social commitments are reported at the Warner Bros. Discovery level. Warner Bros. Discovery has committed to carbon neutrality for its operations by 2030 and publishes an annual ESG report covering energy use, waste, supply chain labor standards, and content diversity.

Relevant to Adult Swim specifically, the content it produces is made under SAG-AFTRA and WGA collective bargaining agreements, which govern writer, actor, and voice actor compensation, working conditions, and residuals from streaming distribution. The 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes affected Adult Swim production schedules alongside the broader industry.

Adult Swim does not carry advertising targeted at children, consistent with its adult programming mandate, and applies FCC standards for content broadcast on linear cable.

Awards & Recognition

Annie Awards: Adult Swim series including Robot Chicken, Rick and Morty, and Primal have received Annie Award nominations and wins for outstanding achievement in animated productions.
Emmy Awards: Rick and Morty won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program in 2018 and 2020. Other Adult Swim series have received Emmy nominations across writing, voice performance, and music categories.
Peabody Award: Adult Swim's "Off the Air" anthology series received a Peabody Award for creative innovation in television.
Critics Choice Award: Multiple Adult Swim original series have been recognized by critics organizations for animation and comedy.
MTV Movie & TV Award: Rick and Morty has won multiple fan-voted awards across comedy and animated categories.

Adult Swim Recalls & Controversies

Boston Bomb Scare (January 2007): Guerrilla marketing for the Adult Swim series "Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for the Nation" involved placing magnetic LED circuit boards depicting the show's Mooninite characters in public spaces across several U.S. cities. Boston authorities mistook the devices for improvised explosive devices on January 31, 2007, prompting a major emergency response including bomb squad deployment, highway closures, and significant disruption to commuter rail. Cartoon Network and Turner Broadcasting issued an apology. Two men contracted for the placement were arrested and charged. Turner Broadcasting agreed to pay $2 million to city and state authorities in Massachusetts in settlement. The incident prompted widespread media coverage and public debate about guerrilla marketing tactics.

Justin Roiland Domestic Violence Charges and Exit (January 2023): Justin Roiland, co-creator and voice of multiple lead characters in Rick and Morty, was charged in Orange County, California with felony domestic violence offenses in January 2023. Adult Swim announced it had parted ways with Roiland and would continue Rick and Morty without him. The charges were dismissed by prosecutors in May 2023 after the alleged victim declined to cooperate. Despite the dismissal, Adult Swim did not reinstate Roiland; the series continued with recast voice actors. The situation was complicated by the fact that Roiland also co-owns the production company that produces some Rick and Morty intellectual property.

Staff Layoffs and Cancellations (2022-2024): Following the Warner Bros. Discovery merger in 2022, the company implemented significant cost-cutting measures affecting Adult Swim. Multiple series were cancelled, some without airing completed episodes. Several animated projects that had been in development or production were scrapped. Staff reductions at Cartoon Network Studios, which also produces Adult Swim content, were announced in 2023. Industry observers noted that the cancellations affected a disproportionate number of series created by creators from underrepresented backgrounds, drawing criticism from animation industry advocacy groups.

Toonami Content Scheduling Disputes: Adult Swim's Toonami block has occasionally been the subject of fan criticism over scheduling decisions, including the removal of popular anime series from the lineup, the reduction of Toonami airtime, and delays in acquiring rights to newly popular titles. These disputes reflect tension between Adult Swim's editorial preferences and the commercial pressures of licensing Japanese anime for U.S. television.

Adult Swim Ownership: Pros & Cons

Advantages

+Warner Bros. Discovery's scale provides Adult Swim access to substantial production budgets, international distribution through Max, and cross-promotional opportunities with Warner Bros. film properties and HBO series
+Adult Swim's niche brand identity and cult audience loyalty give it a defensible position in adult animation that is difficult for competitors to replicate
+The Toonami block provides a stable, cost-efficient programming component through licensed anime, reducing the pressure to greenlight expensive original series to fill airtime
+Rick and Morty's global merchandising and licensing revenue diversifies Adult Swim's income beyond linear advertising

Considerations

-Warner Bros. Discovery's debt load (approximately $39 billion as of 2024) creates ongoing pressure to cut content spending, which has resulted in cancellations and staff reductions that can damage the creative pipeline
-Cord-cutting continues to reduce linear cable viewership, and Adult Swim's streaming presence on Max must compete against Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon for adult animation viewers
-The departure of Justin Roiland and uncertainty about the long-term trajectory of Rick and Morty removes the brand's single most commercially important property from its most predictable state
-The 2022-2024 cancellation wave drew criticism that damaged Adult Swim's reputation among animation creators as a development partner

Frequently Asked Questions About Adult Swim

Sources & Further Reading

Competitors to Adult Swim

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Fox Business	Fox	USA	2007	Mass market	United states	All-ages
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