Trey Parker and Matt Stone are apologizing after their ambitious musical comedy film was shelved by Paramount, leaving a reported nine-figure production in limbo.
The South Park creators addressed the situation after The Ankler reported that their untitled movie, known internally at Paramount as “Whitney Springs,” had been put on the back burner.
The project was being developed as a musical comedy centered on slavery reparations, with South Park writer Vernon Chatman credited with writing the script. Kendrick Lamar was also attached as a producer through pgLang and recorded original music for the film.
The movie has had a rough ride on Paramount’s release calendar.
It was initially scheduled to hit theaters on July 4, 2025, before being pushed in March 2025 to March 20, 2026. By November 2025, it had reportedly been removed from the studio’s slate altogether.
Now, Parker and Stone are acknowledging the delay themselves.
“We take full responsibility for the schedule delay of this movie,” the pair said in a statement, apologizing to their partners at pgLang and Paramount while thanking them for their patience.
They also pointed to the demands of South Park and other circumstances as factors that have gotten in the way, while making clear they still believe in the project.
The money involved makes the shelving particularly notable.
Sources familiar with the production claimed Paramount had spent more than $100 million on the movie under a “negative pickup” arrangement. However, estimates of the actual production cost vary significantly: one insider put the figure at $150 million, while another source familiar with the deal estimated it at $70 million to $80 million.
That discrepancy is worth noting because the reported figures come from different sources and are not presented as a single confirmed production budget.
The project also represents an unusual collaboration between the South Park creators and Lamar, whose involvement extends beyond producing to the film’s original music.
Meanwhile, Paramount CEO David Ellison has spent much of the past year focused on the company’s proposed $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, a deal facing opposition from 12 state attorneys general and an ongoing legal fight.
For now, Parker and Stone’s musical appears to be stuck in a very different kind of Hollywood battle: getting a movie they still believe in back onto the screen.
