Topline
Nearly twice as many viewers tuned in to the latest “South Park” episode on Comedy Central this week compared to the season premiere in July, as the satirical cartoon continues to skewer the Trump administration, provoking the White House’s rage.
The Comedy Central broadcast of the new “South Park” episode—which lambasted Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement raids—drew 838,000 viewers on Wednesday night, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
That’s almost double the 430,000 viewers who watched the “South Park” season 27 premiere, which targeted President Donald Trump and Paramount, on Comedy Central two weeks ago.
These viewership figures do not count the millions more viewers who watch “South Park” on Paramount+, where episodes are now available to stream after the series struck a $1.5 billion deal with the company to produce more episodes and relocate the “South Park” catalog from HBO Max to Paramount+.
The season premiere reportedly garnered 5.9 million viewers within its first three days across Comedy Central and Paramount+.
In this week’s episode, “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone skewered Noem, depicting her dressed in an ICE agent uniform in full glam and a Botox procedure that repeatedly melts off her face. In the episode, her character shoots multiple dogs, mocking her own claim that she once shot her young dog because it behaved aggressively, and she led an ICE raid at a live production of “Dora the Explorer” to target Latinos. The “South Park” character Mr. Mackey joins ICE as an agent after losing his job as a guidance counselor because of Trump’s Department of Education budget cuts. The season 27 premiere, which aired July 23, targeted Trump and his lawsuit settlement with Paramount, portraying the president as Satan’s lover, though Satan repeatedly rebuffs his advances. Trump is portrayed in the episode as having comedically small genitals, and the episode concludes on a faux public service announcement in which a lifelike Trump wanders nude through a desert as a voiceover says Trump’s genitals are “teeny tiny, but his love for us is large.” The episode also depicts Jesus Christ visiting South Park, who said he had to because of the “lawsuit and an agreement with Paramount” as he warned the townspeople: “Do you really want to end up like Colbert?” referencing the canceled late-night show.
Noem said on conservative radio host Glenn Beck’s show Thursday night she felt the portrayal was “petty,” calling it “so lazy to constantly make fun of women for how they look.” Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar and former acting director of ICE, told Chris Cuomo on News Nation Thursday night he felt “the parody was just in bad form and certainly, certainly bad timing,” alleging rhetoric critical of ICE contributes to increased violence against agents. Vice President JD Vance, who was satirized in this week’s episode as a toddler-sized Trump sidekick, responded in a post on X: “Well, I’ve finally made it.” The White House condemned the season premiere last month, calling “South Park” a “fourth-rate” show that “hasn’t been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention.”
David Ellison, the new CEO of Paramount following its merger with Skydance, praised “South Park” in an interview with CNN Friday. “Matt and Trey are incredibly talented. They are equal opportunity offenders and always have been,” Ellison said.
Kristi Noem Rips ‘South Park’ Portrayal As ‘Lazy’ And ‘Petty’ (Forbes)