Paramount Global has finalized a blockbuster five-year licensing deal with South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone—through their Park County/South Park Digital Studios venture—valued at up to $1.5 billion, securing global streaming rights and new episodes on Paramount+. Under this agreement, the entire first 26 seasons of South Park will be available on Paramount+ in the U.S. for the first time ever, and viewers can look forward to 50 new episodes aired across five seasons.
The show’s 27th season premiere, delayed by two weeks due to contract negotiations and the ongoing merger with Skydance, began airing on July 23, 2025 on Comedy Central—followed by next-day streaming on Paramount+ Paramount plans to debut 10 new episodes per year, each first airing on Comedy Central and then moving to streaming.
This deal caps off protracted and contentious negotiations. Parker and Stone had previously sued incoming Paramount President Jeff Shell, alleging interference with potential deals involving Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery. Skydance oversight further complicated early talks—previous proposals valued at $3 billion over ten years were ultimately renegotiated into the current five-year arrangement.
Critically, the South Park premiere itself did not hold back—launching with the episode “Sermon on the ’Mount,” a blistering satire targeting former President Trump, Paramount’s recent $16 million settlement over a 60 Minutes interview dispute, and the network’s alleged media concessions. The show also lampoons broader political themes including “wokeness,” censorship, and the cancellation of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
The timing is especially notable given Paramount’s plan to merge with Skydance—a deal recently given regulatory approval for approximately $8 billion. Critics suggest Paramount may have bent over backward in part due to FCC concerns and political entanglements tied to the Trump administration. Meanwhile, South Park creators appear to revel in satirizing the parent company even as they finalize a historic payday.
Regardless of the political theater that surrounds it, the agreement cements South Park as one of Paramount+’s central franchise properties. Analysts call the South Park deal one of TV’s most lucrative content acquisitions in recent memory—even as the show turns the tables and mocks the very entity that just paid billions to secure it.
