Posted in: Comedy Central, TV | Tagged: south park

South Park Season 27 Premiere Scores Big 3-Day Viewing Numbers

Trey Parker and Matt Stone's South Park Season 27 opener "Sermon on the Mount" pulled in nearly 6 million viewers over its first three days.

Though we still have a week to go to find out what Trey Parker and Matt Stone's South Park has to say about Charlie Kirk, ICE troopers, Donald Trump & The Devil, and more in the second episode of Season 27, the numbers are in on just how well S27E01: "Sermon on the Mount" performed. The two big takeaways from the numbers? Despite what Trump's lackeys would like you to believe, a whole lot of folks still find the long-running animated series funny and relevant. And regarding the power of streaming, cable's slow death has become too big to ignore. Three days after its July 23rd premiere, the season opener had pulled in 5.9 million cross-platform viewers, including on-air replays (a massive 68% bump from February 2023's Season 26 premiere). Digging deeper into the numbers, it seems that less than 10% of that three-day total came from the episode's initial airing on Comedy Central (430,000 viewers).

South Park Skewers Trump, Paramount Bosses in Brutally Funny Return

From the size of his penis and obsession with paintings to the "Epstein Files," the digs at photorealistic Trump were relentless and brutal during the animated series' return effort. Guess who Satan has as a new boyfriend? Yup, with Trump replacing Saddam Hussein, we're seeing Satan "trading up" in terms of dictators (though apparently not "measuring up" with Satan's ex in a very big/small way). As for those paintings, you need to go back and check them out for a genuine appreciation of how they mock Trump wanting to look "military" and something involving a sheep.

Oh, but don't think for one second that the folks who just inked a new deal with Parker and Stone, the parent company of Comedy Central, were going to walk away unscathed. Paramount Global's recent settlement with Trump over a 60 Minutes interview and the questionable reasoning behind the ending of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert would definitely be addressed. When Jesus returns to the town's classrooms, the people of South Park don't take too kindly to the move. The resulting riot brings a $5 billion lawsuit from Trump – you see where this is going, right? In case it wasn't clear enough, having two 60 Minutes anchors nervously announcing Trump's lawsuit with a ticking time bomb on the screen behind them, where the traditional stopwatch used to reside, helped set the tone.

See, it turns out that Jesus didn't want to come back, either… but He had to. "I didn't want to come back and be at the school, but I had to as part of a lawsuit and the agreement…You guys saw what happened to CBS! You really want to end up like Colbert? You guys gotta stop being stupid," Jesus tries to communicate with the townspeople without being overheard (another great moment), adding that Trump "has the power to sue and take bribes and can do anything to anyone." Unfortunately, because so many other organizations having taken a knee for Trump, the townspeople learn that a deal has already been made and they owe Trump $3.5 million, a PSA, and some "pro-trump messaging" to make things right.

Honestly, we couldn't do the PSA justice by describing it. It's disgustingly wonderful in all of the right and wrong ways. Of course, the tagline is spot-on: "Trump: His penis is teeny tiny, but his love for us is large." As for that end scene between Cartman (who does not take losing NPR well) and Butters, we can't help but feel like that was Parker and Stone speaking to one another with some final words in case things go "south" after the episode.

South Park Posts Trump PSA Online; White House Responds to Episode

"The Left's hypocrisy truly has no end – for years they have come after 'South Park' for what they labeled as 'offensive' content, but suddenly they are praising the show," White House Assistant Press Secretary Taylor Rogers told Deadline Headline. "Just like the creators of 'South Park,' the Left has no authentic or original content, which is why their popularity continues to hit record lows. This show hasn't been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention. President Trump has delivered on more promises in just six months than any other president in our country's history – and no fourth-rate show can derail President Trump's hot streak."

For their part, the South Park creators have created a website ("He Trumped Us") that includes the Trump "PSA" that aired during the season opener: "Trump. His penis is teeny-tiny, but his love for us is large."

South Park Creators Discuss Pushing Back on Blurring Trump's Penis

During an animation panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Thursday night, Parker and Stone were joined by Andy Samberg (Comedy Central's Digman!) and Mike Judge (Comedy Central's Mike Judge's Beavis and Butt-Head), with host Josh Horowitz asking the duo what they made of the reaction that the episode has gotten and if they anticipated it. "We're terribly sorry," Parker shared, with an occasional nod and smile (while Stone laughed along).

But the duo wasn't quite done discussing the episode, with Parker and Stone asked if the network sent along any notes about what the animated series had planned. The biggest debate topic? The size of Trump's penis and whether or not it would be blurred. "It's always like, 'So we love the episode,' but that's what happened. They're like, 'OK, but we're gonna blur the penis.' And I'm like, 'No, you're not gonna blur the penis,'" Parker revealed, with Stone  adding, "We put eyes on the penis." Parker continued, noting that they told the network that "if we put eyes on the penis, we won't blur it. And then that was a whole conversation for about four fucking days. It's a character."

Here's a look back at Parker and Stone addressing the Season 27 opener to Comedy Central's South Park:

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