“South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have resolved their dispute with Paramount over the global streaming rights to “South Park,” reaching a deal worth $1.5 billion that will bring the show to Paramount+ in the United States, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.
Among other things, the agreement made through Parker and Stone’s Park County, will bring “South Park” to Paramount+ in the United States for the first time, as well as restoring the show to the streaming service in several foreign countries after being pulled from them last week.
The value of those streaming rights is set at $300 million a year over a 5-year period, according to LA Times.
The conflict over streaming rights to the show escalated in June when Parker and Stone, who operate South Park Digital Studios, owner of the show’s streaming rights, accused Jeff Shell, the Redbird Capital executive who is set to become the next president of Paramount should the deal with Skydance close, of sabotaging streaming deals with other companies.
In a June 21 letter obtained by TheWrap, counsel for Parker and Stone’s entertainment company, Park County, accused Shell of directing Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery to modify their deals in a “manner calculated to benefit Paramount at the expense” of Park County. Specifically, the letter alleged that Shell asked Warner Bros. Discovery to grant Paramount+ an exclusive 12-month window for new episodes, as well as shorten the deal from 10 to five years.
On July 11, “South Park” was pulled from Paramount+ outside of the U.S. as the streamer’s license to stream the series internationally expired.
As part of the new agreement, Parker and Stone agreed to produce at least 10 new episodes of “South Park” a year, according to the LA Times. The deal also means relations between Parker and Stone, and Paramount Global, which owns “South Park” network Comedy Central, is patched up before the Season 27 premiere on Wednesday. The season had already been delayed by 2 weeks, which Parker and Stone blamed on the upcoming Paramount-Skydance merger.
Paramount representatives didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from TheWrap.