From Hollywood A-listers to pop stars, no one is safe from South Park's satirical crosshairs. Join us as we count down the most memorable celebrity reactions to being parodied on the show. Some took it in stride, while others... not so much. Which response surprised you the most?
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00:00If you don't get it, you don't get it.
00:01What do you mean I don't get it, House?
00:03I'm a genius!
00:04Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the best and worst reactions
00:10to having been on the receiving end of some pot shots from South Park.
00:14How'd it go, baby?
00:15Terrible, Ben!
00:16Some girl in Colorado's trying to become the new Jennifer Lopez!
00:22Number 30.
00:23James Cameron
00:24In season 16, South Park decided to tackle the perceived dwindling of human decency.
00:30Much of the episode poked fun at Mama June and Honey Boo Boo, but also included a humorous
00:35bit featuring Titanic director James Cameron.
00:38Mr. Cameron, you don't have to do this.
00:40Why don't you just go back to your house in Malibu?
00:42Go work on another movie!
00:44I have to do this!
00:45I have to try and raise it!
00:47The bar isn't something that actually lowers, Mr. Cameron.
00:50Cameron's real-life interest in deep-sea exploration was depicted as a means to literally
00:56raise the bar on human morality.
00:58Between his obsession with his mission and the sea shanty his crew belted out, it's
01:03an entertaining poke at the Terminator director's oceanic hobby.
01:07His name is James Cameron, the bravest pioneer.
01:11No budget too steep, no sea too deep.
01:13Who's that?
01:14It's him, James Cameron!
01:16During a Reddit AMA, he was asked about the episode and responded only with,
01:20It's funny.
01:21It's like they were actually on the expedition.
01:23Except I didn't actually make the crew sing a song about me.
01:27Number 29.
01:28Ed Sheeran Although not a direct parody of Sheeran himself,
01:33he certainly had a reaction to its release.
01:36During season 9's Ginger Kids episode, Cartman does a presentation about red-haired children.
01:41We've all seen them.
01:42On the playground.
01:43At the store.
01:44Walking on the streets.
01:46They creep us out and make us feel sick to our stomachs.
01:47I'm talking, of course, about Ginger Kids.
01:50Eric proceeds to describe them as disgusting creatures who have no souls and cannot survive
01:56in sunlight.
01:57While asleep, Kyle and Stan turn Cartman into a ginger, hoping for him to see the realities
02:02of his hate speech.
02:03Wow, Cartman.
02:04You look different.
02:05Yes, well, it's interesting you should point that out, Kyle.
02:09According to Sheeran, despite having been mocked for his red locks back in England,
02:13no one in the United States ever said a word.
02:17That is, until Ginger Kids came along.
02:19In an interview, he implied the episode had ruined his life in America after it aired.
02:25Number 28.
02:26Richard Dawkins This two-part story arc of South Park took
02:30an extreme look at how the evolutionary process works.
02:34All right, kids, it is now my job to teach you the theory of evolution.
02:38Oh, boy.
02:39Now, I, for one, think that evolution is a bunch of bullcrap, but I've been told I have
02:46to teach it anyway.
02:47Garrison is heavily opposed to teaching evolution until convinced otherwise by notable evolutionary
02:53biologist Richard Dawkins.
02:55Their new romance spawns an alternate future where religion doesn't exist.
03:00You lived in the time when a great event happened, a glorious event that finally made
03:05all religion obsolete.
03:06Now, the entire world is atheist.
03:10The real-life Dawkins' reaction to his South Park counterpart was a mixed bag.
03:15He loved the satirical take on a future founded on evolutionary facts, but took issue with
03:20the relationship between his fictional self and Garrison, saying he found it to be not
03:25satire.
03:26Number 27.
03:27Rob Schneider Once a staple of Saturday Night Live, Rob
03:31Schneider left the comedy show to pursue a career in film acting.
03:34For a while, it seemed like Schneider's choices for roles all shared a common theme.
03:39From an animal to a gigolo and even a woman, he seemed to steer towards characters that
03:44fell into the fish-out-of-water trope.
03:46Rob Schneider was an animal, then he was a woman, and now Rob Schneider is a stapler.
03:56South Park extended this even further by turning him into a stapler and a carrot.
04:01While appearing on the Club Random podcast with Bill Maher, Schneider discussed the episode
04:06and how he thought it was very funny.
04:07And knowing how brutal the show can be on celebrities, his depiction could have been
04:11far worse.
04:12I just remember like how people wanted that to hurt you.
04:16You know, they just like, I did that, you see, you know, you know what I mean, they
04:18wanted that.
04:19Absolutely.
04:20Did it make it, did it bleed, did it cut you?
04:23Number 26.
04:26Seeing notable acts lose their cool over a parody can be entertaining, but often it's
04:31steering into the satire that endears them even more to us fans.
04:35During one episode, Kyle's brother Ike keeps seeing dead celebrities.
04:39Hi, Billy Mays here for Mega Scrub Cleanser.
04:43Are you tired of your kitchen counters getting those nasty stains?
04:48Don't just rub them, Mega Scrub them.
04:50Billy Mays, no!
04:53This leads the folks over at Ghost Hunters to the Broflovsky residence to see if they
04:57can solve this supernatural mystery.
04:59What follows is a brutal takedown on how the most mild sounds and smells can be spun to
05:05be the acts of the dead.
05:07During a Ghost Hunters live session in Milwaukee, the real Ghost Hunters played the clips from
05:11the show and jokingly called it a very accurate depiction of them.
05:15Even going as far as to say,
05:17Great craftsman solve all times.
05:20Number 25.
05:21Danica Patrick Cartman has a dream of becoming a NASCAR driver,
05:25but is convinced he's not poor and stupid enough to do so.
05:29With the help of his gullible buddy, Butters, Eric eventually finds his way into the world
05:33of NASCAR, alongside the likes of drivers like Danica Patrick.
05:36Bring it on, Eric Hart, you scared of competition?
05:39I'm just as poor and stupid as you.
05:42I'm gonna drive, and I'm gonna go fast, and I'm gonna turn to the left sometimes.
05:47Can we just get back to the subject of racing, please?
05:50Bring it on, Danica!
05:51Patrick, by far and large, comes off a lot easier in this episode than many others on
05:56this list.
05:57Shown to be more irritated by Cartman's behavior than anything, the real Danica Patrick took
06:02her portrayal in stride.
06:03Oh, son of a b****!
06:05During a press conference, she chuckled at the depiction of racers in general, and took
06:10it as a compliment to be featured in such an episode.
06:13Number 24.
06:15Carlos Mencia Any fan of this show knows how much the writers
06:19love to poke fun at Kanye West.
06:21But during the infamous Fish Sticks episode, Carlos Mencia takes both a literal and figurative
06:27beating.
06:28It wasn't me!
06:29I didn't really start the fish stick thing, alright?
06:31You're just saying that now because you're scared.
06:34No, man, it's true!
06:35I stole it, man!
06:37I took credit for it because I'm not actually funny!
06:40While West takes his frustrations out physically on the comedian, the show also takes a swipe
06:45at the accusations of Mencia having stolen jokes from other comics.
06:49When asked about this appearance on the episode, Mencia took it all in stride and seemed to
06:54enjoy being mocked.
06:56He did, however, comment on how he was more surprised at the emotional blowback from the
07:01people in general regarding his joke theft fiasco.
07:05What I didn't realize was the emotional visceral reaction to all this from people.
07:12I didn't see that coming.
07:15Number 23, Slash.
07:18If you're old enough to be watching this, then The Secret of Santa Claus is probably
07:22out of the bag by now.
07:24But according to South Park, it's not as clear cut when it comes to the Guns N' Roses
07:28guitar player, Slash.
07:30Come on!
07:31Kids write to Slash every day!
07:33But it all just goes into this big pile over here!
07:36The reason I can't tell you where Slash lives is because he don't live nowhere!
07:41Don't you ever wonder how Slash can be all those places at the same time?
07:45It's because he's made up!
07:46One Season 15 episode puts a spin on the Santa Claus narrative by portraying Slash as a magical
07:52figure who every kid thought was fake, but might actually be real.
07:56Kyle, Kyle!
07:57Look!
07:58You don't think that... that he isn't real?
08:07Maybe.
08:08Or maybe we haven't been told such a big fib after all.
08:11In our world, Saul Hudson, aka Slash, is indeed a real guitar player.
08:17But when asked by a fan in a Reddit AMA if he was real or made up by their parents, Slash
08:23said he was real, but couldn't be 100% positive of it.
08:27Number 22, Chris Hansen.
08:30Chris Hansen came into the public eye through his To Catch a Predator TV series.
08:35At the height of his popularity, South Park ran an episode where Hansen's signature style
08:40was used to help shine a light on Tourette's Syndrome.
08:43It all started when I received this touching letter from a brave little boy in Colorado.
08:47Dear Mr. Hansen, I have Tourette's and I want the world to understand what it's like.
08:52Won't you do a special report on me so that the world can learn to accept us instead of
08:56just laugh?
08:57Cartman has been faking the condition to justify spouting hate speech without any consequences.
09:03Hoping to do his worst, Cartman gets Hansen to showcase him in a television special, which
09:07takes Hansen's real life work and inflates it to a preposterous extent.
09:12When asked about it on the Law and Crime Network, the real Hansen praised the show's portrayal
09:17of him, even commenting on how his kids thought he was cool for being on that show.
09:22When Chris Hansen was parodied on South Park, that was a big deal, suddenly I was cool.
09:27Number 21, Meghan and Harry.
09:29The marriage of Meghan Markle to Prince Harry brought an enormous amount of attention to
09:34the royal family, particularly when the duo chose to step away from their official duties
09:39to pursue a seemingly more normal life.
09:41However, it seems their contradicting reasons for their departure is what South Park took
09:46aim at.
09:47We want privacy!
09:48We want privacy!
09:51The episode eviscerated the duo's seeming frustration with a constant bombardment from
09:56the media and a lack of privacy, all while finding any way they can to draw attention
10:01to themselves.
10:02After the episode aired, Markle was allegedly very upset and overwhelmed with how they were
10:07portrayed.
10:08There were even reports of a possible lawsuit against the show, and that insiders claimed
10:12future episodes would be monitored for further mockery.
10:31Number 20, Nicole Snooki LaValle.
10:35When Jersey Shore first hit the airwaves, fans couldn't get enough of the antics,
10:39the catfights, and promiscuous behavior of the show's star, Nicole Snooki Palizzi.
10:52It didn't take long before South Park dedicated an entire episode to poking fun at the ever-expanding
10:57world that was the Jersey Shore.
11:00One notable gag was their portrayal of Snooki as some type of carnal animal that attacked
11:05anyone who came near her.
11:14The day after the episode aired, the real Snooki took to Twitter and quoted her South
11:18Park counterpart in saying, "'Snooki wants smoosh-smoosh.'
11:21We've officially made it."
11:23Clearly laughing at herself, it's a far better reaction than some of the others on
11:28this list.
11:32Number 19, Robert Smith.
11:35So this one is less parody as it's just a rare appearance.
11:41But come on, it's Robert Smith of The Cure.
11:44Going all the way back to the first season of the show, Smith appeared as himself to
11:48help the boys fight Barbra Streisand.
11:50We'll get to her later.
11:59Transforming into a Mothra-like creature, he defeats her and even has Jesus call him
12:06their savior.
12:11When asked about his appearance and portrayal years later, Smith was surprised by what he
12:16saw, but loved how Kyle gave huge props to The Cure's Disintegration album.
12:23Number 18, Brian Boitano.
12:26In the second Spirit of Christmas shorts, the boys can't decide whether to help Jesus
12:31or Santa.
12:32So when Stan asks, audiences are wondering why they'd ask for help from a figure skater.
12:48The same rang true in the South Park movie, but with a fantastic musical number that followed.
13:01Boitano himself saw the movie and worried about his portrayal, but came out loving what
13:06they had done.
13:07He's since worked with the creators to design t-shirts with the slogan and sell them for
13:11charity.
13:12On top of that, it introduced him to the likes of younger fans who now only know him through
13:17the show.
13:25Number 17, Paris Hilton.
13:28Near the end of season 8, South Park took aim at Paris Hilton and her status as a role
13:34model for the young girls in town.
13:44It's hard to tell which part is more brutal.
13:46The video play set at the mall, or her competition with Mr. Slave that ends the episode.
13:52Either way, there's no mistaking how savage the show's takedown is.
13:59When asked what she thought, she responded by saying she had never seen the episode,
14:03but thought any time someone makes fun of you, it should be taken as a compliment.
14:08Given how she's tweeted about watching the show at home, we're guessing she's still
14:12a fan.
14:14Number 16, Terry Irwin.
14:17How long after someone passes away are you allowed to tell jokes about them?
14:30In the case of South Park, it's seven weeks.
14:41Famed crocodile hunter Steve Irwin had been fatally injured in September of 2006.
14:47In late October of the same year, South Park aired an episode that featured him with a
14:52stingray sticking out of his chest.
14:54Terry Irwin, Steve's wife, was incredibly offended by the portrayal, citing concerns
14:59about how her children would feel if they saw it.
15:01She found support in her friend Mark Aimee, who suggested Irwin fans sick their dangerous
15:06pets on the creators of the show in protest.
15:18Number 15, Sarah Jessica Parker.
15:22One thing the creators of South Park have always stood by is their idea that anything
15:27and everything is fair game when it comes to comedy.
15:37So when female writers called them out for being mean about tearing into Sarah Jessica
15:41Parker over her looks, the two, once again, didn't hold back.
15:52Despite what anyone else thought, Parker herself never addressed the episode directly.
15:58Instead, in an interview with Stylist magazine, she commented on how people seem to think
16:03being mean is funny.
16:05She went on to add that personal versus professional criticism was uncivilized and vulgar.
16:20Number 14, Mama June Shannon.
16:23Shows like Toddlers and Tiaras and Here Comes Honey Boo Boo have received all kinds of criticisms
16:29regarding the depictions of their stars.
16:37The latter has been the subject of countless commentary about the family's diet and lifestyle
16:41choices over the course of its four seasons.
16:50Given the type of language often used to describe the popular TLC program, there's a lot of
16:54irony in June Shannon's reaction to being satirized on South Park.
16:59During a TMZ appearance, she was asked what she thought of the parodies of her show.
17:03Taking some in stride, she wasn't a fan of how South Park took her on, saying,
17:13Number 13, Bob Saget.
17:16As the original host of America's Funniest Videos, Bob Saget's quips were subtle, and
17:21often bordered on some of the worst dad jokes out there.
17:34Yet week after week, people would tune in to see what videos were coming next.
17:38Back in Season 1 of South Park, Bob's gig as a host was parodied as Stan's grandfather
17:44watched America's Stupidest Home Videos.
17:47Grandpa Marsh loved the jokes, but the boys found them incredibly lame.
18:01During a Reddit AMA, Bob Saget was asked about his portrayal on South Park.
18:05He responded by saying he loved how Grandpa laughed at his jokes.
18:09Comparing it to relationships, he said the parody felt good and hurt all at the same
18:14time.
18:18Number 12, Martha Stewart.
18:21Martha Stewart and her various shows have been depicted several times over the years
18:25on South Park.
18:29Her first appearance saw us learn about an unusual way to consume a Thanksgiving Day
18:33turkey, whereas a Season 13 episode gave us one of the most creative ways to make use
18:38of paper and glitter crafts.
18:40Either way, much like Bob Saget, she also addressed her appearances on South Park during
18:45a Reddit AMA.
18:50Her answer was quick and simple, I thought it was really cute.
18:53We're not sure if she saw both of these episodes, but we're guessing she thought
18:57they were a good thing.
19:01Number 11, Sally Struthers.
19:04Sally Struthers may have got her start on All in the Family, but she went on to become
19:09a spokesperson for ChildFund, a charity focused on helping children in third world countries.
19:15Her commercials would often air on television showing her amongst the kids.
19:24South Park did their own story about children in Africa, and featured an oversized Struthers
19:29who had been hoarding all of the donated food.
19:40According to the Season 1 DVD commentary, Struthers was a big fan of the show until
19:45this episode aired.
19:46It continues by saying she was so bothered by what she saw in the episode that she was
19:51emotionally distressed for days.
19:54People thought it was really mean to Sally Struthers and apparently Sally Struthers was
19:58a fan of South Park up until she saw this episode and it really bummed her out and what
20:02we heard is that she cried for like days.
20:04Number 10, Nick Jonas.
20:06To kick off Season 13 of South Park, Kenny and his new girlfriend go off to see the Jonas
20:11Brothers in concert.
20:19The episode takes shots at the brothers by mentioning how they wear purity rings and
20:23are essentially servants to a maniacal Mickey Mouse.
20:32During a 2016 Reddit Ask Me Anything, Nick Jonas admitted he wasn't a big fan of the
20:36episode when it originally came out.
20:39He said that he had so much going on when he was parodied that it was hard to find the
20:42humor in it.
20:43However, the episode has since grown on him.
20:51He finds it funny and has watched it several times since then.
20:54It's nice to see Nick Jonas being able to laugh at his younger self.
20:59Number 9, Cesar Millan.
21:02In Season 10's Tssst episode, Cartman's mom hires Cesar Millan as a trainer to try
21:07and get Cartman in line.
21:12By treating him much like a dog, it doesn't take long for the celeb to make Cartman listen
21:17and behave.
21:26This entry is unique in that it's the only one on the list where the person being featured
21:31made their own YouTube reaction video for their episode.
21:34For the better part of almost 20 minutes, Cesar breaks down the different things the
21:38show did and said.
21:43He's more than complimentary to the creators and shows a genuine love for what they do.
21:57Now that is how you react to being on South Park.
22:01Number 8, Al Gore.
22:03When Season 10's ManBearPig episode aired, it was intended to poke fun at how frequently
22:09Al Gore wanted to talk about climate change.
22:22The creators had no problem roasting how intense the politician got about his beliefs, yet
22:26more than 10 years later, they'd changed their minds and made an in-episode apology
22:32to Gore.
22:37During an appearance on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Gore was asked about what he
22:41thought of his portrayal.
22:42Not only did he think his original episode was funny, but he praised the show for later
22:46acknowledging how real ManBearPig turned out to be.
22:50It was great to see Gore take everything in stride and appreciate what the show had done.
22:59Number 7, Russell Crowe.
23:08Never afraid to go after whomever was causing a stir in the real world, the folks at South
23:12Park took aim at Gladiator star Russell Crowe.
23:20He'd been in the news several times due to his aggressive behavior.
23:23The writers took this to the nth degree and devoted an entire storyline, where they showed
23:28him as a person who just picks fights around the world.
23:35When Crowe appeared on 60 Minutes, he was asked about his portrayal on the show.
23:39He was quick to compliment Parker and Stone for their work.
23:42Crowe also admitted that seeing himself in such an exaggerated manner actually got him
23:46to reflect on his own life.
24:00Judging from his statements, it seems as though seeing his depiction on South Park may have
24:05actually been therapeutic for the actor.
24:07Number 6, George RR Martin.
24:14South Park once opted to do a three-part episode devoted to HBO's Game of Thrones.
24:19The epic comedy is set in and around Black Friday.
24:22During the story, the boys fight each other over access to the two new game consoles coming
24:28out that weekend.
24:29Partway though, George RR Martin, the author of the books which inspired Game of Thrones,
24:34appears.
24:35He tries to help the boys with dragon knowledge, but keeps talking about one particular part
24:40of human anatomy.
24:45The real Martin is a fan of the show and largely likes his South Park portrayal, but he did
24:50have a hilarious and not-exactly-safe-for-work response indicating that he's actually obsessed
24:55with another physical feature of human beings.
24:58Number 5, Lorde.
25:00No matter how many times we talk about Randy Marsh as Lorde, it still makes us laugh.
25:06Lorde, we're all big fans of your music and we thank the world of you for staying
25:10and working here even after your music career took off.
25:12Well, my music and fluvial geomorphology are intertwined.
25:16But knowing what the singer herself thinks about it makes the plotline even better.
25:20At the start of season 18, we get a glimpse of Randy Marsh dressed up as Lorde singing.
25:31This turns into a story later on where we find out he's the real singer and is struggling
25:36to maintain his dual identities.
25:46During an interview and on her own social media outlets, Lorde gave praise for the show's
25:51portrayal of her.
25:52She even went as far as to do an impression of Randy doing his impression of her.
25:56Lorde's meta-compliment is a huge sign of her approval.
26:01Number 4, Barbara Streisand.
26:04Way back during the first season of South Park, the show decided to take aim at Barbara
26:09Streisand.
26:17The show's creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, chose her mainly out of her distaste
26:22for their home state of Colorado, whom she had swore to never return to.
26:27After being portrayed in the episode, Mecca Streisand, the singer responded with a fairly
26:32serious answer.
26:39Instead of simply taking the jab with a grain of salt, she called out their particular brand
26:44of satire.
26:45Streisand claimed shows like South Park add cynicism and negativity in our culture, especially
26:50in children.
26:51Stone and Parker clearly didn't take her comments too much to heart because they continued
26:56to make fun of her.
27:12Number 3, Jennifer Lopez.
27:15When 2003 rolled around and J.Lo made her first appearance on South Park, the singer-actress
27:20wasn't exactly a fan.
27:39Even prior to the episode's airing, it appeared that South Park co-creator Trey Parker had
27:43already gotten on her bad side after infamously wearing her dress to the 2000 Oscars.
27:49After season 7's Fat Butt and Pancake Head came along, the bad blood she had for the
27:54show and its creators seemed to intensify.
28:05Parker and Stone had even heard that people were allegedly fired from the set of a J.Lo
28:09movie after repeating lines from the episode around her.
28:12We wouldn't recommend mentioning the show at all if you're ever around the pop star.
28:20Number 2, Kanye West.
28:32Do you like fish sticks?
28:34Well, apparently Kanye West doesn't.
28:42During a season 13 episode, Cartman and Jimmy come up with a silly joke about fish sticks
28:47that serves as a double entendre.
28:50Although everyone on Earth is laughing at the joke, the only one who doesn't get it
28:54is Kanye West.
29:08Things went slightly differently in the real world when West responded to his portrayal
29:12with an all-caps post.
29:14During the post, he claimed he was working on some of the negative aspects of his personality
29:19and talked about the nature of celebrity.
29:21West also complimented the show's creators and admitted to finding the show funny.
29:26It was weirdly inspiring to see the musician rolling with the punches.
29:30However, a lyric from his song, Gorgeous, may have indicated that he was still feeling
29:35bitter about the whole ordeal.
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29:571.
30:00Tom Cruise
30:07South Park has made itself known as being willing to go after anyone, regardless of
30:12who they are.
30:13One of the most well-known reactions to an episode of the show came after season 9's
30:18Trapped in the Closet episode.
30:19The story poked fun at both Scientology and Tom Cruise.
30:31Rumor has it that the actor was so offended by the episode that he threatened to pull
30:35his Mission Impossible 3 press tour unless the network agreed to not rerun the episode
30:40in question.
30:44Whether or not Cruise actually made this threat was irrelevant because the original re-airing
30:48was pulled.
30:49It did make the air again, eventually, without issue, long after the heat of the actor controversy
30:54cooled down.
31:04How do you think celebrities should react to being parodied on South Park?
31:09Let us know your thoughts in the comments.