Comedy Central announced today that South Park will return for its 26th season on Wednesday, February 8. New episodes of the renowned animated series will air Wednesday nights on Comedy Central and will be available to stream in HD on Southpark.cc.com, CC.com, and the Comedy Central App post-premiere.
First debuting in 1997, South Park is now the longest-running show on cable. What began as a simple crude cartoon has ballooned into one of the most acclaimed animated shows on television, scoring five Emmys and a Peabody award.
Created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the groundbreaking series follows the topical and controversial adventures of Stan, Kyle, Cartman, and Kenny — along with the rest of the colorful cast of characters — in and around the quiet little mountain town of South Park in Colorado. The series often tackles controversial social and political topics through humor and satire.
In 2021, Parker and Stone inked a massive deal with ViacomCBS Inc. totaling $900 million. The deal ensures will be getting plenty of more South Park content in the coming years, including five more seasons on Comedy Central (taking us all the way to Season 30) as well as 14 more movies to be released exclusively on Paramount+.
South Park is coming off a big year in which it celebrated its historic 25th-anniversary last summer. The festivities included pop-up shops with exclusive merchandise, a 25th Anniversary Experience filled with collectibles, props, scripts and more from the show, as well as a one-night-only concert featuring Parker, Stone, the bands Primus and Ween, and a special appearance by members of the band Rush. A recording of the concert is currently available to stream on Paramount+.
Season 26 will hopefully be a return to normal for the series which experienced truncated seasons the past two years due to COVID-19. Season 24 consisted of just four episodes, largely revolving around the pandemic, while Season 25 ran for just six episodes last year. However, we were also treated to a two-part special last summer, South ParkThe Streaming Wars.
Season 26 will kick off on Comedy Central on February 8th, but it's unlikely to be the only South Park content we get this year. While nothing official has been announced, it's probable that another special or two will be released on Paramount+ later in the year. In the meantime, get ready for some more misadventures following everyone's favorite troublemakers.