
Eight times ‘South Park’ showed no mercy with its celebrity takedowns, from Bono to Kanye West
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8 times ‘South Park’ served up scathing celebrity takedowns
“South Park’s” season 27 premiere featured a shocking portrayal of President Trump. The animated series has lampooned a number of celebrities over the years. From Kanye West to Tom Cruise, here are eight of the show’s most memorable takedowns. Share your favorite “South Park” moments with us in the comments below. Click through the gallery to see the full list of celebrities parodied on the show. Back to Mail Online home.Back to the page you came from. Back To the pageYou came from: ‘South Park,’ ‘The Jeffersons, “The King of Pop,” “Gorgeous Toon’” and “Kanye West.” Back to The page you were from. “ South Park” is on Comedy Central, with a new season premiering on Sunday, October 14. The show is available on iTunes, Google Play, and other platforms. For more information, visit www.south-park.com.
“South Park” returned with quite the commotion last month, as the long-running animated series viciously skewered President Trump in its season 27 premiere after long resisting portraying the president directly.
From Kanye West to Tom Cruise, here are eight scathing celebrity takedowns from the show’s nearly three-decade history. And share your favorite “South Park” moments with us in the comments below!
Barbra Streisand
Streisand was one of the first celebrities to get the “South Park” treatment, with creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone taking aim at the acclaimed singer and actress in the season 1 episode “Mecha-Streisand.” The 1998 appearance featured a parody of Streisand, who attacks the town after turning into a giant mechanical monster. Streisand wasn’t exactly happy with her portrayal, as she revealed in an interview with the magazine Mirabella in 1998, noting how shows like “South Park” can “add to the cynicism and negativity in our culture, especially in children.” However, that didn’t stop Parker and Stone from parodying her again in future episodes.
A scene from the “South Park” episode “Fat Butt and Pancake Head.” Comedy Central
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Ben Affleck
Cambridge-raised star Ben Affleck has been parodied a few times on “South Park.” He first shows up in a season 5 episode, where he appears as the long-lost son of parents whose faces are buttocks. He makes his infamous return in season 7, where Affleck falls in love with “Ms. Lopez,” which is just Cartman crudely imitating Jennifer Lopez by painting a face on his hand.
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Bono
U2 frontman Bono fell into the “South Park” crosshairs in the season 11 episode “More Crap.” The show portrays the singer as a literal piece of feces come to life, serving as an antagonist who challenges Stan’s dad over a record-breaking bowel movement. “South Park” would go on to parody Bono a few more times in future episodes, albeit in much briefer appearances.
A scene from the “South Park” episode “The Ring.” Comedy Central
Jonas Brothers
Pop band the Jonas Brothers were the center of the season 13 episode “The Ring,” with the show ridiculing the siblings over their use of purity rings in their heyday. The episode also showcases the band as being forced to project their innocent image under threat of violence from Mickey Mouse, who physically beats them into following his commands. In a recent podcast interview, Joe Jonas admitted that he “was the only brother that loved” being parodied on the show, adding that their “skin was not as thick back then.”
A scene from the “South Park” episode “Fishsticks.” Comedy Central
Kanye West
Rapper Kanye West isn’t known for his ability to take a joke, so it’s no surprise that he didn’t exactly appreciate “South Park” parodying him in the season 13 episode “Fishsticks.” Airing just months before his infamous outburst during Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV VMAs, the episode revolves around a running gag where West doesn’t understand a crude joke about eating fishsticks, complete with an auto-tuned parody song. While West initially called the episode “pretty funny” in a 2009 blog post, he’s put the show on blast in several song lyrics over the years (“Choke a ‘South Park’ writer with a fishstick,” he raps in his 2010 song “Gorgeous”), and has continued to share his ire over the parody in the years since.
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A scene from the “South Park” episode “The Jeffersons.” Comedy Central
Michael Jackson
The late King of Pop was skewered a few times on “South Park,” most prominently in the season 8 episode “The Jeffersons.” Sporting a fake mustache and going by the name “Michael Jefferson,” the Jackson parody character appears as a new resident, moving in with his young son Blanket, and causing all sorts of mayhem and mischief for the town. Following the singer’s death in 2009, “South Park” featured Jackson in the season 13 episode “Dead Celebrities,” where he refuses to accept his place in the afterlife.
Tom Brady
“South Park” has made fun of Tom Brady on several occasions, but the biggest parody moment occurred in the season 19 premiere. Taking on the Deflategate scandal, Cartman channels his inner Brady after getting four days of detention from the new school principal. Promising to “Tom Brady this thing,” Cartman tries to weasel out of the punishment, later imagining himself as Brady, Bill Belichick, and Roger Goodell in a dream sequence.
A scene from the “South Park” episode “Trapped in the Closet.” Comedy Central
Tom Cruise
Action movie star and noted Scientologist Tom Cruise became the butt of “South Park” jokes in the season 9 episode “Trapped in the Closet.” The Emmy-nominated installment pokes fun at Cruise’s connections with the Church of Scientology, with the actor refusing to come out of Stan’s closet, despite pleas from other famous faces like John Travolta and R. Kelly (whose music video of the same name inspired the episode). The late singer Isaac Hayes, who played Chef on the show and was a Scientologist, reportedly left due to its portrayal of his religion, but his son claimed in a recent social media post that it was “someone else within his Scientology circle” who “quit the show for him.”
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Matt Juul can be reached at matthew.juul@globe.com.
Source: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/08/01/arts/south-park-celebrity-takedowns/