The year is 1997. Men In Black is a critical favorite and number one at the box office; Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind 1997” is dominating the Billboard Hot 100; and the Florida Marlins just won the World Series.

The year is 2024. There’s been three more Men In Black movies, none of which matched the original’s clever mix of comedy and sci-fi; Elton John is retired from touring and has lost his eyesight; and the Florida Marlins are the Miami Marlins, and they stink.

A lot has changed in the past 27 years, but South Park, which premiered in August 1997 on Comedy Central, is still chugging along. Here’s everything we know about season 27 of the animated series.

Plot

South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone rarely give interviews. But at the film festival premiere of ¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!, a documentary directed by Arthur Bradford about the Colorado-based Mexican restaurant that inspired one of the show’s best episodes, they discussed their process — and burnout.

“It’s just way more fun to be like, Cartman’s going to dress up like a robot,” Stone told Vanity Fair. “The stuff I’m jealous of is TikTok — like, ‘That’s a great joke, that looks like they had fun doing it,’ and then you move on. We both just have endless respect for that.” However, Stone still prefers “writing a story and building a frame so that you can do more complicated stuff.”

Parker and Stone also seem to prefer the high-concept, non-topical episodes, based on the episodes they called their favorites in 2011. Here’s the top 15:

1. “Terrance and Phillip in Not Without My Anus” (season 2, episode 1)
2. “Good Times with Weapons” (season 8, episode 1)
3. “AWESOM-O” (season 8, episode 2)
4. “Woodland Critter Christmas” (season 8, episode 14)
5. “The Death of Eric Cartman” (season 9, episode 6)
6. “Trapped in the Closet” (season 9, episode 12)
7. “Make Love, Not Warcraft” (season 10, episode 8)
8. “With Apologies to Jesse Jackson” (season 11, episode 1)
9-11. “Imaginationland Trilogy” (season 11, episode 10-12)
12. “Major Boobage” (season 12, episode 3)
13. “Eat, Pray, Queef” (season 13, episode 4)
14. “Dances with Smurfs” (season 13, episode 13)
15. “You’re Getting Old” (season 15, episode 7)

As for their least favorite, it’s every episode in the first three seasons.

Cast

If you’re reading a post about season 27 of South Park, chances are high that you know Trey Parker and Matt Stone voice nearly every character on the show. But there a few exceptions, including Mona Marshall, April Stewart, and Kimberly Brooks as most of the ladies, and Adrien Beard as Token.

Release Date

With the exception of Paramount+’s “The End of Obesity” special, 2024 will go down as a rare year with a new episode of South Park. Why? Well…

“We’ve tried to do South Park through four or five presidential elections, and it is such a hard thing to — it’s such a mind scramble, and it seems like it takes outsized importance,” Stone told Vanity Fair. “Obviously, it’s f*cking important, but it kind of takes over everything and we just have less fun.” Parker added, “I don’t know what more we could possibly say about Trump.”

We’ll find out next year, when South Park season 27 is expected to premiere.

Trailer

Alas, there’s no trailer for season 27. But since 2025 is the 20th anniversary (!!!) of “Free Willzyx,” let’s rewatch a clip from the South Park episode with the craziest non-Scott Tenorman ending.