South Park Renamed to South America in Biting Swipe at Trump
The animated series 'South Park' has seen a surge in viewership for seasons 27 and 28, with many episodes poking fun at President Donald Trump's administration. The show's co-creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, have announced that the franchise will be renamed to 'South America', inspired by Trump's recent map changes. This nod to the president comes as he has renamed the Gulf of Mexico to 'Gulf of America' and Lake Ontario to 'Lake America'.
The show's creators also took aim at tech giants Apple and Google, which have changed the names of geographic items on their Maps units. The name change from 'South Park' to 'South America' is a clear reference to these developments. Meanwhile, Mapquest, owned by System1 Inc, has maintained its original naming conventions for Lake Ontario and seen a surge in downloads and usage.
The move comes amid past allegations that Paramount Skydance's merger with Skydance was secured through a settlement with the president over a '60 Minutes' lawsuit. The show is set to premiere new episodes on Comedy Central on September 16, with seasons 27 and 28 featuring five episodes each that poked fun at Trump and his administration.
'South Park', or 'South America', recently won its first Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program since 2013. The show's viewership saw a significant boost in season 27, with the premiere episode reaching 5.9 million viewers, marking its biggest debut since 1999.