"South Park" Creators on Easy Street
by Joal Ryan April 27, 1998, 12 p.m. PT
Quick! Before killing Kenny gets boring!
Striking while the 'toon is red-hot, the creators of South Park have inked a fat new deal with Comedy Central.
For fans, the pact means new episodes of the hit animated series through 2000. For Trey Parker and Matt Stone, it means a reported $15 million--minimum, plus a cut of the show's booming T-shirt and merchandise concession.
Since its debut last August, South Park, about a quartet of potty-mouthed scamps in a snowy Colorado town, has become basic cable's highest-rated show.
Last week's episode--revealing the identity of portly tyke Cartman's father (it was his mother)--was the series' biggest ratings' grabber yet. An estimated 6.2 million viewers tuned in for the occasion.
Numbers like that don't go unnoticed. Comedy Central's president acknowledged to the Los Angeles Times that the network wanted to keep Parker and Stone "real happy"--hence the new deal.
For their eight-figure paychecks, the duo will write, produce and do voices for 40 new episodes in addition to the 33 Comedy Central has already bought. (So far only 15 have aired. The second season begins May 20.)
If you're not sick of Parker, 28, and Stone, 26, yet, you will be soon--the pair has a full slate of film projects in addition to their tube duties.
First, there's BASEketball, a comedy from Airplane! director David Zucker, starring the two. It's due in August.
Then there's the R-rated feature version of South Park. That could be ready for theaters by next spring.
There's also the pair's two live-action film fest offerings: Orgazmo, a midnight screening at Sundance scheduled to open theatrically this fall, and Cannibal! The Musical, a pick at both Slamdance and the new alternafest Cannes You Dig It due in limited release later this year.
And, last and maybe least, there's the script they're penning for a sequel to Dumb and Dumber.
Lesson learned: Never underestimate the power of potty humor.
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dR Pepper