Paramount+ wins South Park library and new episodes after $1.25bn deal
Under the new deal, Paramount will pay South Park Digital Studios, co-owned by the media giant and Park County, more than $1.25 billion (€1bn), ranking it among the richest deals in television history, according to an LA Times report from Tuesday.
The announcement follows the season 27 premiere of the long-running animated series on Comedy Central, with the new episode attacking US President Donald Trump. During the episide, Trump is depicted in bed with Satan and it also takes a jab at Paramount over its $16 million (€13.6m) settlement with Trump and the cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert was cancelled in recent days. Picture: Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File
In recent days, Paramount and its CBS network have faced criticism over the cancellation of the decades-old TV institution, and removing from air one of Trump's most prominent and persistent late-night critics. The cancellation followed Colbert's criticism of a settlement between Trump and Paramount Global over a 60 Minutes story.
Under the agreement, Paramount will air 50 new South Park episodes across five seasons. The episodes will debut on Comedy Central before streaming on Paramount+ the following day.
All 26 previous seasons will also be available on Paramount+, which regained international streaming rights after a period of contractual disputes.
The deal concludes protracted negotiations between Paramount and the show's creators, who previously sued incoming Paramount President Jeff Shell, accusing him of interference with rival negotiations involving Warner Bros Discovery and Netflix.
Talks were further complicated by the Skydance leadership, which is in the process of acquiring Paramount, reportedly objecting to earlier proposed terms valued at $3 billion over ten years.
South Park debuted on Comedy Central, a Paramount-owned network, in August 1997.
Reuters
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