The upcoming 27th season premiere of South Park is in jeopardy due to a contentious contract dispute between series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Paramount Global, and its incoming owner, Skydance.
At the center of the conflict is a proposed 10-year, $3 billion overall deal for Parker and Stone’s company, Park County, which would more than triple the value of their current agreement expiring in 2027. Sources familiar with the negotiations state that Park County believes it had established a framework for the deal with Paramount prior to the merger’s advancement. “I think that Paramount pre-acquisition was interested in a broader range of possibilities than would have been approved by Skydance and Redbird,” noted an insider.
However, Skydance, which asserts it has approval rights over major contracts while its merger with Paramount awaits regulatory clearance, is resisting the proposal. The 10-year duration has become a primary sticking point, with Skydance reportedly unwilling to commit beyond five years as it prioritizes cash reserves in a rapidly changing media landscape.
“There is no resolution at this time, but all involved recognize the need for a quick, positive resolution,” a Park County spokesperson said Monday. Both Skydance and Paramount declined to comment.
The dispute is increasingly likely to escalate into a legal battle. Parker and Stone have retained prominent attorney Bryan Freedman, known for his aggressive negotiating tactics, to prepare a potential lawsuit. The suit would likely accuse the incoming Skydance regime—including CEO David Ellison and RedBird Capital’s Jeff Shell, poised to become president of the new Paramount—of interfering in contract negotiations.
The stalemate has already delayed the season 27 premiere to July 23 and stands as a visible consequence of the turbulence surrounding the Paramount-Skydance merger. On July 2, Parker and Stone posted on social media, stating, “This merger is a shitshow and it’s fucking up South Park. We are at the studio working on new episodes and we hope the fans get to see them somehow.”
The conflict is compounded by complex streaming rights. While Paramount owns the series, streaming revenue is managed through South Park Digital Studios, a joint venture that grants Parker and Stone’s Park County a 50% share—an unusually favorable deal dating back to 2007. The show’s streaming deals expired on June 23, forcing a temporary extension with Warner Bros. Discovery to keep it on Max domestically. Last week, the series was pulled from Paramount+ internationally after its license expired.
Negotiations remain at an impasse. Park County’s lawyer, Kevin Morris, has held firm on the decade-long, $3 billion terms. Meanwhile, a potential financial pressure point for the creators is an $800 million loan Park County secured from The Carlyle Group in 2023, which requires an estimated $80 million in annual interest payments.
Legally, the two sides are fundamentally at odds. Skydance maintains that its interim operating agreement grants it the right to approve or deny all material contracts before the merger’s closure. Park County insists that Skydance is barred from exercising such control until the deal is officially finalized. In a June 21 letter to Shell, Park County stated, “We hereby demand that you, Redbird, and Skydance immediately cease your interference. If these activities continue, we will have no choice but to act to both protect our rights and discharge any obligations we may have to the public.”
