A lot of the big, zeitgeisty events of the past little while read as though they were boosted from the writing room of South Park. It was almost starting to feel as though the show’s creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, would run out of ideas, given that real life seemed to be jacking all their potential plot points. But, rest assured, the boys have plenty more up their sleeves, or at least they better, after inking a new deal with MTV Entertainment Studios that locks them in for 5 more seasons of silly buggers as well as 14 – yep, count ’em, 14 feature-length films set to the backdrop of the iconic Colorado town and its townsfolk.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the deal saw ViacomCBS put a cool US$900 million on the table to entice the dynamic duo to renew their South Park series up to Season 30, with Season 25 expected to premiere next year. Per the deal, Parker and Stone are expected to deliver two feature-length South Park films every year, the first expected to hit screens this year, right up to 2027.
The new trove of content will air exclusively via Paramount+, which launches in Australia on August 11, which could very well be an important milestone in the impending streaming wars given that the bulk of the Comedy Central catalogue, the former home of South Park, exists only via HBO Max.
South Park has largely remained an unstoppable force since its 1997 debut, a storied roll-out that also includes their debut film, the 1999 cult classic South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. However, South Park Studios have been shut for the past year on account of the global pandemic, and as a result, regular episodes were put to the side to make way for more sporadic hour-long specials. Safe to say, us mere mortals have no idea what kind of bat-shit crazy plotlines have been cooked up in the strange reality of isolation.
Furthermore, MTV Entertainment Studios have also offered the pair the chance to embark on new IP, with entertainment chief Chris McCarth confirming as much. “Franchising marquee content like South Park and developing new IP with tremendous talent like Matt and Trey, is at the heart of our strategy to continue growing Paramount+,” they shared.
Feature Image: Comedy Central
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