President Donald Trump and his administration have been moonlighting as movie critics ever since they got back into the White House — and it was only a matter of time before they gave an overly serious response to the latest episode of South Park.
South Park just premiered its 27th season after a long, messy battle with executives at Paramount. The studio has had its fair share of battles lately — won some, lost some — and emerged from the fray looking more than a little dubious. The one that has stuck in the public’s mind is their out-of-court settlement with Trump, to the tune of $16 million, which ended up playing a big part in securing their merger with Skydance.
But when it comes to South Park, Paramount had to shell out $1.5 billion for new episodes of the famously irreverent show. And what did the series — which has even been praised by Donald Trump Jr. for being “brave” — deliver in return? For one, the premiere rehashed a motif from 20 years ago, where they depicted the late Iraqi despot Saddam Hussein in a toxic romantic relationship with Satan. This time, it’s Trump who’s taking Satan for granted, in a relationship that reminds the red-horned cartoon character of his ex, Saddam.
And it didn’t end there. The episode also eviscerated Paramount’s cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s show and essentially dared the president to file yet another lawsuit. By the next morning, X was full of people joking about how South Park co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone couldn’t have timed the episode better.
BBC reports that Trump’s White House spokesperson, Taylor Rogers, eventually gave her review, telling the media: “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.”
Incidentally, the South Park creators were already at San Diego Comic-Con, surrounded by reporters eager to hear their response. Parker just pulled a mockingly grumpy face and offered an insincere, “We’re terribly sorry.” As usual, the co-creators of the show couldn’t care less who they offend. Interestingly, Trump has his own shoddy history of lame apologies, where he deflected blame, minimized the issue, or refused to fully acknowledge fault. Seems like he has met his match.
South Park is one of those unicorns in entertainment that manages to connect with multiple generations in different ways. Gen Z loves the show now just as much as previous generations did when it first came out. That billion-dollar deal was signed for a reason — Paramount already had the numbers to back it up. So, by all intents and purposes, it’s still a first-rate show, regardless of who it targets.
That being said, South Park has never aligned with any political ideology. One day it’s going after the right, the next day it’s coming for the left. The show exists to lampoon popular culture and highlight the flaws in all of us — and that’s what keeps it fresh. Trump’s administration just happens to be more sensitive than most.
Published: Jul 26, 2025 09:48 am