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'South Park' Creators Sign Latest Streaming Mega Deal

"South Park" creators Matt Stone (L) and Trey Parker said they will try out new formats following the deal with Paramount+ Frazer Harrison GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File
"South Park" creators Matt Stone (L) and Trey Parker said they will try out new formats following the deal with Paramount+ Frazer Harrison GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File
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'South Park' Creators Sign Latest Streaming Mega Deal

"South Park" creators Matt Stone (L) and Trey Parker said they will try out new formats following the deal with Paramount+ Frazer Harrison GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File
"South Park" creators Matt Stone (L) and Trey Parker said they will try out new formats following the deal with Paramount+ Frazer Harrison GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File

"South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone signed a massive deal Thursday to make 14 movies of their enduring satirical cartoon for streaming service Paramount+, as Hollywood's frenzied scramble for online content accelerates.

While MTV Entertainment Studios -- which like Paramount+ is owned by parent corporation ViacomCBS -- did not release any financial figures, Bloomberg News put the deal at $900 million, which would make it one of the largest in television history.

The Paramount+ streaming platform launched in March in a bid to compete in a crowded and content-hungry marketplace led by the likes of Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime, reported AFP.

In a statement, MTV Entertainment's Chris McCarthy said developing new content with "tremendous talent like Matt and Trey, is at the heart of our strategy to continue growing Paramount+."

The deal also includes multiple new series of "South Park" for television network Comedy Central, which will see the long-running satire reach its 30th year by 2027.

"South Park," set in small-town America and known for crude language and lampooning hot-button social issues since 1997, has already spawned one film, multiple video games and other merchandise.

"Comedy Central has been our home for 25 years and we're really happy that they've made a commitment to us for the next 75 years," said Parker and Stone in the joint statement.

"We can't wait to get back to doing traditional South Park episodes but now we can also try out new formats," they added.

While ViacomCBS did not immediately comment on the $900 million figure, it would put the deal on a par with Reese Witherspoon's sale of her Hello Sunshine company to a new private equity-backed media venture this week.

It also comes after Amazon in May agreed to buy MGM studios for $8.45 billion.

Other streaming platforms recently launched by major media and tech companies to join the so-called "streaming wars" include HBO Max, Peacock and Apple TV+, each seeking vast content libraries to attract and retain subscribers.

ViacomCBS said Wednesday that it had reached 42 million streaming subscribers. Current market leader Netflix has more than 200 million.

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‘All Good Things Must Come to an End’: The Who Will Perform One Last Time in North America

Pete Townshend poses for photographers during the announcement of "The Who: The Song Is Over, The North American Farewell Tour" on Thursday, May 9, 2025, in London. (AP)
Pete Townshend poses for photographers during the announcement of "The Who: The Song Is Over, The North American Farewell Tour" on Thursday, May 9, 2025, in London. (AP)
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‘All Good Things Must Come to an End’: The Who Will Perform One Last Time in North America

Pete Townshend poses for photographers during the announcement of "The Who: The Song Is Over, The North American Farewell Tour" on Thursday, May 9, 2025, in London. (AP)
Pete Townshend poses for photographers during the announcement of "The Who: The Song Is Over, The North American Farewell Tour" on Thursday, May 9, 2025, in London. (AP)

British rock band The Who are to say their final goodbye to North America this summer.

Singer Roger Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend confirmed Thursday that they will perform hits from six-decade career during "The Song Is Over North America Farewell Tour," named after the band’s 1971 hit.

The band, which by the 1970s had become one of the world’s biggest touring bands, easily filling the largest US stadiums, will play their first gig in Florida on Aug. 16, with further dates in cities including New York, Toronto, Los Angeles and Vancouver, before a final date in Las Vegas on Sept. 28.

"Every musician’s dream in the early '60s was to make it big in the US charts," Daltrey said. "For The Who, that dream came true in 1967 and our lives were changed forever."

The band went from performing club shows to headlining the Woodstock festival in the US and becoming one of the biggest box-office draw in the world. The band were inducted into the Rock n’ Roll Hall Of Fame in 1990.

Daltrey, 81, and Townshend, two years his junior, have been one of rock's most prolific double acts, surviving the deaths of drummer Keith Moon in 1978 and bass guitarist John Entwistle in 2002.

"Today, Roger and I still carry the banner for the late Keith Moon and John Entwistle, and, of course, all of our long-time Who fans," Townshend said. "I must say that although the road has not always been enjoyable for me, it is usually easy: the best job I could ever have had. I keep coming back."

Though Daltrey didn’t write songs, he was able to channel Townsend’s many and complicated moods — defiance and rage, vulnerability and desperation.

Together, they forged some of rock’s most defining sounds: the stuttering, sneering delivery of "My Generation," the anguished cry of "They’re all wasted!" from "Baba O’Reilly," and the all-time scream from "Won’t Get Fooled Again." Two of their albums "Tommy" and "Quadrophenia" were also adapted into successful films in 1975 and 1979, respectively.

Pre-sales will run from May 13 ahead of the general sale beginning May 16.

"Well, all good things must come to an end. It is a poignant time," Townshend said. "For me, playing to American audiences and those in Canada has always been incredible."

Daltrey, who said a throat specialist has told him he should have a "day off" after every gig he performs, and Townshend also revealed there are no plans at the moment for a farewell tour of the UK.

"Let’s see if we survive this one," Daltrey said. "I don’t want to say that there won’t be (a UK farewell tour), but equally I’m not confident in saying there will be."