Paramount's 'South Park' streaming deal is in limbo as Skydance merger drags on

Media elephantine Paramount Global is trying to debar a streaming aboriginal without Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny.

As Paramount struggles to implicit a cardinal merger, the institution is successful the midst of a protracted dialog to widen 1 of its biggest and astir important franchises: the long-running, foulmouthed cartoon “South Park.”

Paramount’s $900-million wide woody with “South Park” creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker doesn’t expire for different 2 years. New episodes tally archetypal connected Paramount’s basal cablegram web Comedy Central.

But efforts to renew that task and bring the amusement to the Paramount+ streaming work person deed a large snag, according to 3 radical acquainted with the discussions who were not authorized to talk publicly.

The concern highlights heavy tensions and disagreements arsenic a trio of executives effort to negociate Paramount until the company’s merchantability to David Ellison’s Skydance Media, which has the close to o.k. oregon contradict ample deals specified arsenic the “South Park” pact nether covenants made with Paramount.

Paramount leaders are hopeless to fastener down “South Park” streaming rights successful the U.S. and abroad. They’ve agelong been frustrated by a licensing statement made six years agone by the erstwhile authorities that sent the amusement to rival HBO Max, owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. That woody expires this month.

“South Park” is 1 of Paramount’s astir important series. Along with “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart,” the 4 boys and their celebrity-skewering ways enactment Comedy Central connected the representation for basal cablegram viewers, taking connected hot-button issues including Scientology, the War connected Terror, the royal household and the Trump administration.

During a May net call, Paramount co-Chief Executive Chris McCarthy — who runs Paramount’s media networks arsenic good arsenic Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios — told investors that “South Park” episodes would statesman streaming connected Paramount+ successful July.

However, Paramount hasn’t nailed down the streaming rights to “South Park,” according to the 3 radical acquainted with the conversations. Since earlier this year, Paramount has made astatine slightest 1 connection to Parker and Stone arsenic an aboriginal hold of their wide deal.

The institution besides wants to unafraid rights to watercourse the 333 episodes of “South Park” connected Paramount+.

Some of the knowledgeable radical expect “South Park” organisation fees to beryllium valued astatine much than $200 cardinal a year.

But Skydance hasn’t signed off, believing the deals to beryllium excessively rich, according to the sources. Paramount executives judge the amusement is worthy the large bucks, fixed the show’s enduring popularity and legacy.

Representatives for Paramount and Skydance declined to comment.

Hollywood cause Ari Emanuel, whose steadfast WME represents Parker and Stone, defended Paramount and Skydance’s handling of the concern connected Friday by phone.

“Nobody has rejected anything. They are conscionable doing their analysis,” Emanuel told The Times successful a little interview. “We’ve got offers from different distributors. Everybody wants this show.”

Skydance’s $8-billion takeover of Paramount has been successful a holding signifier for months arsenic the 2 companies hold for national regulators’ approval. Skydance, backed by tech mogul Larry Ellison and RedBird Capital Partners, is anxious to instrumentality implicit the storied media company.

They mean to bring accrued fiscal rigor to Paramount’s operations, different sources person said. Paramount and Skydance person told Wall Street the woody volition bring $2 cardinal successful outgo savings, with fractional of that coming successful the archetypal year.

Deadlines are looming. The caller season, the program’s 27th, is scheduled to debut July 9 connected Comedy Central.

Unless Paramount strikes a woody with the creators by June 23, the institution risks losing the franchise’s streaming rights due to the fact that Parker and Stone could store the amusement to different funny streamers, specified arsenic Netflix, Amazon Prime Video oregon Hulu. However, sources cautioned that negotiations could spell past the June deadline and that the parties expect a woody to get done.

Represented by their longtime lawyer Kevin Morris, who is starring the existent negotiations, the duo carved retired the net rights astir 2 decades ago. They formed a associated task with Paramount (then known arsenic Viacom) called South Park Digital Studios. That determination proved highly lucrative for Parker and Stone, besides known for the deed Broadway philharmonic “The Book of Mormon.”

Paramount runs the associated task with Stone and Parker, sharing power of the streaming rights to the amusement that launched successful 1997 connected Comedy Central, though the duo tin veto streaming deals they find unfavorable.

Companies are typically not expected to wade excessively profoundly into different firm’s affairs. Federal antitrust laws prohibit alleged gun-jumping, erstwhile an acquiring institution begins calling the shots earlier a deal’s authoritative closure. But Paramount agreed to judge Skydance’s input connected big-ticket expenditures portion the 2 sides hold for the woody to close.

The “South Park” streaming rights negotiations besides person been analyzable by a suit brought 2 years agone by Warner Bros. Discovery. That institution accused Paramount of violating presumption of its 2019 licensing pact for “South Park,” aft Warner paid astir $540 cardinal for the show’s streaming rights.

Paramount and the “South Park” creators developed specials featuring the 4 animated boys successful a fictional Colorado upland municipality to watercourse exclusively connected Paramount+. Warner argued the determination violated its licensing deal. HBO Max declined to comment.

Two years aft the HBO Max deal, Paramount struck a caller accord with Parker and Stone for $900 million, sealing their concern and ensuring caller episodes of “South Park” would beryllium made. That woody runs to 2027, though Paramount executives person offered to widen that statement for respective years.

Paramount has agelong intended to displacement the amusement to Paramount+ arsenic soon arsenic the HBO Max woody expires.

The assorted parties person agelong envisioned a script wherever home and planetary rights would beryllium shared by astatine slightest 2 antithetic streaming services. Although neither spouse would person exclusive rights, the existent inclination successful tv is for studios to maximize gross to assistance wage for costly programs, similar “South Park,” portion maintaining immoderate streaming rights.

Paramount besides has been dealing with different situation that has been analyzable by the Skydance merger. The institution has sought to settee President Trump’s $20-billion suit claiming subsidiary CBS News deceptively edited a “60 Minutes” interrogation with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, an allegation CBS denies.

Trump’s lawsuit hasn’t been resolved, and the Federal Communications Commission has been dilatory to reappraisal Skydance’s projected takeover of Paramount, extending the woody review.

The Skydance transaction has been pending astatine the FCC since past fall, leaving Paramount executives successful limbo.