South Park Premieres Naked Trump Amid Paramount $1.5B Deal, White House Criticism

The premiere of South Park's 27th season sparked significant controversy by featuring an AI-generated deepfake of President Trump stripping naked and engaging in provocative scenes, including snuggling with Satan and threatening lawsuits. The episode aired shortly after Trump signed an executive order aiming to prevent 'woke AI' in the federal government and following Paramount's $1.5 billion deal to produce 50 new episodes of the show over five years. Stephen Colbert praised the South Park episode as a 'message of hope' during his Late Show monologue, despite his own show's cancellation by CBS, which stirred concerns about political pressure linked to the parent company's $16 million settlement with Trump. The White House dismissed South Park as irrelevant, while critics questioned Paramount's editorial independence amid its $8 billion merger with Skydance, approved by regulators despite the turmoil. South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone continued to push boundaries in satire, targeting Trump and cultural controversies despite backlash and corporate negotiations. The episode highlighted ongoing tensions between creative freedom in comedy and political influence in media conglomerates.