Inside the $3 Billion ‘South Park’ Fight That May Blow Up Its Future

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The opening of the 27th season of South Park, set for later this month, faces uncertainty due to ongoing negotiations between creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Paramount Global, and Skydance Media who are set to take over as studio owners, according to reports from The Hollywood Reporter.

Dispute centers around a proposed 10-year, $3 billion contract for Parker and Stone, set to double the current deal’s valuation, which ends in 2027. Park County, the entertainment company behind South Park, claims to have reached a preliminary agreement with Paramount Global. An insider involved in negotiations comments that Paramount may have been more open to various opportunities prior to their acquisition by Skydance and Redbird.

However, despite Skydance claiming approval rights on contracts while they await regulatory approval for their merger with Paramount, they have alternative intentions. The term of the proposed agreement has become a contentious issue during negotiations, as Skydance is unwilling to extend beyond an additional five years due to the swift-changing media landscape where they prioritize building up cash reserves.

At present, there’s no immediate solution, but everyone agrees on the importance of a swift, favorable outcome,” Park County’s representative stated on Monday. Neither Skydance nor Paramount responded to comments. Previously, a representative from Skydance informed THR that “under the terms of the deal, Skydance holds the power to approve significant contracts.

It’s becoming more and more possible that this disagreement will escalate to a legal court case. Parker and Stone have enlisted the help of Bryan Freedman, a well-known lawyer and tough negotiator with a reputation for aggressive strategies, who might initiate a potential lawsuit claiming that the Skydance leadership, including CEO David Ellison and Jeff Shell (who is set to become president of new Paramount if the merger is approved), have meddled in contract negotiations. Instead, there’s another option: a public relations war where Skydance could find their name in the news as yet another instance of a troubled entertainment merger.

Delaying the season 27 premiere by two weeks to July 23 is a clear demonstration of the negative impact that the delay in approving the Paramount-Skydance merger has had. The partnership between Parker and Stone, a highly valued creative pair in Hollywood, and Skydance is uncertain, as is the show’s continuation after over 28 years and 300 episodes.

This merge is creating chaos and negatively impacting ‘South Park’. Despite being at the studio producing new seasons, we’re hoping that the viewers can still enjoy them somehow,” was the message from Parker and Stone on their social media on July 2nd.

South Park” is managed by Paramount through a partnership known as South Park Digital Studios, overseen by a five-person board including Comedy Partners (an affiliate of Paramount). This studio operates in collaboration with creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who produce the series under the jurisdiction of Park County.

Park County has an exceptionally unique agreement, established in 2007, which allows the company approximately half of the revenue generated through streaming via a joint venture. At that time, South Park was extremely popular on traditional TV and DVDs, while streaming video was still in its infancy. Initially, Park County offered streaming episodes on their own website with ad support. However, as premium subscription services like Netflix, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, and Paramount+ emerged, they significantly altered the way streaming videos were monetized.

The deadline for streaming deals for the show ended on June 30th, resulting in an extension of a domestic agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery to keep it available on HBO Max temporarily. Previously, the international license for Paramount+ to stream episodes of this long-running animated series expired, leading them to remove the series from their global streaming service last week.

Both Paramount and Park County are firmly sticking to their positions during negotiations. When they resumed talks, Kevin Morris, a lawyer representing Park County, refused to compromise on a deal that’s been in place for over a decade, with a minimum value of $3 billion. In recent times, Morris has gained national recognition due to his prolonged legal and financial backing of Hunter Biden.

At Paramount, it’s Chris McCarthy, one of the co-CEOs, who manages the aspects related to streaming and television content. Meanwhile, Keyes Hill-Edgar, another co-CEO, handles negotiations for contracts.

The Paramount-Skydance agreement is facing delays primarily because of its political aspect, which includes President Donald Trump and a legal dispute with 60 Minutes concerning an interview featuring Kamala Harris.

A potential aspect of the negotiations involves a $800 million loan obtained by Park County from the Carlyle Group in 2023, which is presently being marketed to investors. This debt could potentially strain Parker and Stone’s finances due to approximately $80 million in annual interest payments, as per one source familiar with the agreement. It was suggested that Paramount might be willing to pay over $150 million each year in a new contract, but not for a decade.

According to Skydance’s perspective, the temporary business agreement allows them to either accept or reject significant contracts. However, Park County argues that Skydance cannot exert control or give instructions until the merger is formally completed. A legal dispute is now developing.

In a letter dated June 21st, Park County clearly instructed Shell: ‘Redbird and Skydance, you must stop your meddling immediately.’ Failure to do so could result in us taking action to safeguard our rights and fulfill any responsibilities we owe to the public.

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2025-07-15 04:24