Creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone announced Tuesday that the long-running animated series South Park will be renamed 'South America' ahead of its 29th season premiere. The move is a pointed jab at former President Donald Trump's recent attempts to rename bodies of water, countries, and states.
Artwork reflecting the name change was also released. In a statement, Parker and Stone, who have frequently satirized Trump in recent seasons, said the decision was inspired by the "bravery and patriotism of Apple and Google." They specifically referenced Trump's reported alterations of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America and Lake Ontario to Lake America.
The statement concluded with a barb directed at Paramount, Comedy Central's parent company, which the creators described as a "Skydance Capitulation." This phrasing riffed on Hollywood industry jargon and alluded to Paramount's recent $16 million settlement with Trump in July 2025. Many observers viewed the settlement, which followed what was widely seen as a baseless lawsuit, as an appeasement of the former president. The settlement preceded the government's approval of a merger between Paramount and Skydance, a company founded by David Ellison, son of billionaire GOP donor Larry Ellison, who now leads Paramount.
Parker and Stone had previously finalized a $1.5 billion, five-year streaming deal with Paramount just days before the Skydance merger was formally approved. The creators' renewed satirical focus on Trump began in Season 27's premiere, which featured a fictionalized version of the former president after a nearly decade-long absence from the show. Subsequent storylines have largely parodied his presidency.
Earlier this month, the South Park team received an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program. They used the acceptance to further criticize Trump, posting a graphic to X that depicted Trump holding the Emmy trophy he had publicly stated he never received for his work on The Apprentice. The show has won five Emmys to date, all in the Outstanding Animated Program category.
Parker and Stone have previously commented on their shift in focus, with Parker telling The New York Times in November, "It's not that we got all political. It's that politics became pop culture." The White House, in response to the show's ongoing satire, issued a statement asserting that the 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."