Just in time for Thanksgiving, South Park released its first of several Paramount Plus specials last week. South Park: Post COVID builds off the pandemic’s first two corona-themed long-form hits, trading in 2021 for a dystopian future where the pandemic rages on. A lot has changed for Stan, Kyle, Kenny, and Cartman, but the four ex-friends couldn’t necessarily predict this week’s twist: A new sex comedy is beating South Park on HBO’s U.S. top 10 list.
Over on HBO Max, South Park is only the fifth most popular TV show across the country. Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble’s The Sex Lives of College Girls, which debuted on Nov. 18, takes the lead as the premium streaming network’s most popular TV show. Gossip Girl, Friends, and Teen Titans Go! all follow in front of South Park, although the latter leads over Black and Missing as well as Being Serena.
South Park broke into the top-five on HBO Max on Nov. 30, just five days after South Park: Post COVID launched as a Paramount Plus exclusive. A rising tide may lift all boats, but without the special on HBO Max, South Park could theoretically slip back into the lower double-digits in the days ahead.
Granted, that may not be for long: Paramount has 13 more direct-to-streaming episodes expected over the coming months, including a follow-up to Post COVID expected in December. With the holidays just a few weeks away, expect plenty more South Park binging during Christmas break.
In the meantime, South Park: Post COVID remains a smash hit for Paramount Plus, with the special leading the network worldwide on its top 10 films list for Nov. 30. Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s original theatrical debut, 1999’s South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, also charts on Paramount’s top 10 flicks list at fourth place. But when it comes to South Park on HBO, Kaling and Noble’s sex comedy still reigns supreme.
