South Park co-creator Trey Parker has made a mock apology to President Donald Trump for ridiculing him in the opening show of their 27th season. The episode, broadcast on Wednesday, made several jokes at the US president’s expense, including depicting him naked in bed with Satan. After it aired, the White House described South Park as a “fourth-rate” show that was “hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention”. Parker said, with a mock-serious face: “We’re terribly sorry.” The long-running satirical animated show is often topical, taking aim at figures in authority. The episode tackled the legal dispute between Paramount and the president – just hours after its creators had signed a five-year deal with Paramount+ for 50 new episodes and streaming rights to previous seasons. The move comes after a months-long bidding war between major streaming platforms, and new episodes will first be shown on Paramount’s cable channel Comedy Central, before streaming on Paramount+. The deal was worth $1.5bn (£1.1bn). In the new episode, Mr Trump sues the town of South Park and then Jesus – another recurring character – appears, telling them to settle. The episode took a jab at Trump’s obsession with using lawsuits to silence media and political opponents, ChatGPT, the injection of religion into America’s public schools, government censorship, and corporations caving to pressure. The Hollywood Reporter called the episode “shocking” and “hilarious, and as expected, controversial”.
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