South Park Season 24: Is It Happening And How Many Episodes Are We Getting?
Here's everything we know about South Park Season 24, which has already sort of started, but is airing episodes in a different way.
This article is more than 2 years old
South Park Season 24 on Comedy Central has already begun, though fans may not be aware of it. Giant Freakin Robot is here to clear up any confusion around the show’s return and what to expect.
SOUTH PARK SEASON 24 HAS ALREADY BEGUN
Yes, folks, South Park Season 24 would make it one of television’s longest-running series (310 episodes and counting) and has technically been ongoing since the September 2020 episode, The Pandemic Special, which revealed that Randy was the culprit of the COVID virus outbreak.
South Park Season 24 also followed up months later in March 2021 with the South ParQ Vaccination Special, which took an incredibly meta look at QAnon conspiracy theorists and the already immunized people who run amok around town.
So, fans of the long-running show have apparently seen the first two episodes of South Park Season 24, but what about the remainder of the season? Are fans going to see it and, if so, when?
WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF SOUTH PARK SEASON 24?
Comedy Central has yet to announce when South Park Season 24 will air the remaining episodes. They have also not announced if South Park will continue on as they have in the past with weekly episodes or if Season 24 will air much like their first two episodes – as specials. So, it is possible that fans will continue to get “specials” which could also mean instead of the normal 10 episodes (which has been the number since season 17), fans may see longer, but fewer, episodes to finish out Season 24.
TAKING ON EVERYTHING
South Park came into existence in 1997 (Cartman Gets an Anal Probe) and not only was an immediate hit, but at once controversial. Taking no prisoners, the animated series follows the exploits of four boys (voiced by both series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone) Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormick. The series was aimed specifically at adults as the humor is immediately profane and dark and leaves no stone unturned when it comes to satire.
Most topics Parker and Stone cover are now routinely considered taboo. They cover sex (many times in horrifically funny ways), race, creed, color, religion, genders, alternative lifestyles, nothing is off limits.
The series was first going to be shown on Fox until Parker and Stone refused to back down on removing a character they created, Mr. Hankey (a talking piece of poo), that eventually caused the split between the creators and Fox.
Thankfully, Parker and Stone shopped their project around and finally landed with Comedy Central. It’s been smooth sailing, so to speak, ever since.
SOUTH PARK: BIGGER, LONGER, & UNCUT
The early (though still continuing) popularity of South Park gave way to another popular project – the big-screen version of the hit series. With South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut, Parker and Stone were able to expand on their TV series with an uncut feature film that won them a place in the 2001 Guinness Book of World Records for “Most Swearing in an Animated Film.” The movie also received an Academy Award nomination for Best Music, Original Song for Marc Shaiman, and his song Blame Canada.
FAMOUS GUEST STARS
Not only does South Park take on anything and everything, but they also have some famous help. Many times, the celebrity voices are impersonated by Parker and/or Stone but there have been numerous celebrities who have lent their voices for the South Park cause. Included in those are Cheech & Chong, Michael Buffer, Brent Musburger, Jay Leno, Jennifer Aniston, Richard Belzer, and Natasha Henstridge. Parker and Stone have also convinced George Clooney to provide the barks for Sparky, Stan’s dog. Henry Winkler loaned out his voice for the various grunts and growls for a kid-eating monster in the second season. They have also had a list of musical guests provide voices that include Ozzy Osbourne, Elton John, Rick James, Sia, and Bat Out of Hell singer Meat Loaf.
#CANCELSOUTHPARK
In an effort to perhaps get a jump on the recent cancel culture seen across the nation, Parker and Stone began their own #CancelSouthPark campaign. They even produced their own commercial to get canceled, though it was more an introduction to Season 22. Check it out below.
Thankfully, fans understood. They know the duos sick sense of humor (Orgazmo, BASEketball), so a cancel campaign was nothing to them but a fun way to advertise the upcoming season.
SOUTH PARK SEASON 24…AND 25…AND 26…
So South Park Season 24 is on, and despite efforts to have their own show canceled, Comedy Central decided to not only bring back the popular series for a 25th season but for a 26th and 27th season as long as both Parker and Stone are on board. They appear to be. “Apparently, our efforts to get our own show canceled have fallen short. Luckily, we love Comedy Central and Kent Alterman [President of Comedy Central] and our staff, so we are looking forward to new cancellation opportunities in the next few years.”
Since the show premiered in 1997, Parker and Stone have been hands-on as they have written, directed, and edited each and every episode. They also lend their vocal talents to every episode. “South Park is the greatest comedy in the history of television, unmatched in its satirical strength and cultural relevancy and it shows no signs of slowing down,” said Alterman via Variety. “If humanity is still intact in 1,000 years, historians will see the most transcendent artists of our era as The Beatles, Muhammed Ali, and Matt and Trey. We’ll do as many seasons as they would like.”
AGAIN, WHEN?
Chances are fans won’t get much of a heads up when it comes to the remaining however many episodes season 24 will entail. We know they’re coming, just like we know South Park will be back for the next few years. After that, well not even the series creators know. In 2019, Stone mentioned via DigitalSpy that “I am 48. Trey turns 50 this year. So I will say that I don’t think we will be doing this show when we’re 60.”
Parker told The Hollywood Reporter that “I don’t think we have ever had an ‘OK, let’s sit down and decide if we are going to keep going.'”
For now, let’s enjoy the fact the perhaps the most controversial show on television is still with us. Cancel culture, as well as the series creators, have not been able to take the show off the air, and for the next few years, fans are going to get their fill of the offensive exploits of Stan, Kyle, Cartman, and Kenny as well as the other’s who reside in South Park. In this day and age, that’s a good thing.
