Among its many comedic strengths, South Park movie parodies have become a beloved staple of the series. Whether they’re skewing blockbuster franchises, indie darlings, or cult classics, Trey Parker and Matt Stone know how to take a film, flip it on its head, and deliver gut-busting laughs in the process. For two decades, South Park has thrilled TV audiences with its sharp satire and fearless comedy.
From over-the-top action scenes to lovingly recreated shots, South Park movie parodies don’t just mock; they often rival the entertainment value of the films themselves. While there have been too many hilarious South Park movie parodies, a few have remained memorable over the years. Here’s a look at TVOvermind’s 10 funniest South Park movie parodies ever made.
10. Cloverfield (2008)
The “Pandemic” (Season 12, Episode 10) and “Pandemic 2: The Startling” (Season 12, Episode 11) episodes of South Park parodied Matt Reeves‘ found footage monster horror film Cloverfield. In the two-part episodes, the boys become involved in a scheme to sell CDs by a Peruvian pan flute band. This somehow triggers a government crackdown and the unleashing of giant, chaotic guinea pigs terrorizing cities. As the entire premise spirals into chaos, the episodes parody how films like Cloverfield rely on shaky cam, panic-driven handheld footage, and over-the-top disaster tropes. The most hilarious spoof in the episodes is replacing the scary lizard-like creature in Cloverfield with cute guinea pigs.
9. Braveheart (1995)
Season 1, Episode 8 (“Starvin’ Marvin“) briefly parodies Mel Gibson’s Academy Award-winning epic historical war drama Braveheart. The Thanksgiving-themed episode introduces viewers to Marvin, a malnourished Ethiopian boy. Marvin is mistakenly sent to South Park in place of a free sports watch the boys tried to scam from a charity. Besides the episode poking fun at American consumerism and misguided charity campaigns, it parodies William Wallace’s (Mel Gibson) speech as Chef rallies South Park townspeople against the genetically engineered turkeys. Hilariously, one of the turkeys gives the same speech to rally the turkeys against humans.
8. The Da Vinci Code (2006)
“Fantastic Easter Special” (season 11, episode 5) satirizes Ron Howard’s mystery thriller The Da Vinci Code (2006), which is adapted from Dan Brown’s novel. The episode transforms a seemingly innocent Easter celebration into a wild religious conspiracy involving secret societies, hidden bloodlines, and a centuries-old plot to keep a rabbit in power—literally.
The ludicrous premise alone is comedy gold, but what truly elevates it is how closely it mimics the tone and tropes of The Da Vinci Code. The episode was brilliant, especially as it was released a year after the movie came out. In the end, Stan Marsh learned not to ask questions and leave things as they were.
7. Inception (2010)
The “Insheeption” episode (Season 14, Episode 10) stands out as one of the funniest South Park movie parodies because of its absurd and spot-on spoof of Christopher Nolan’s Inception movie. The episode brilliantly exaggerates the already complex and layered dream sequences of the original film. However, it pushes them to ridiculous extremes. It pokes fun at the way pop culture often blindly praises things it doesn’t fully understand. The truth is, while Inception was widely celebrated, South Park’s parody sought to expose the ridiculousness of the plot.
6. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Season 7, episode 3 (“Toilet Paper“) parodies a classic, Jonathan Demme’s psychological horror thriller The Silence of the Lambs. In true South Park fashion, the episode takes an absurd premise. Cartman and the boys toilet-paper a teacher’s house, with the episode’s humor lying in its exaggerated seriousness. While Stan and Kyle wrestle with guilt, Officer Barbrady interrogates a disturbed Josh Myers locked away in a high-security mental facility.
Their interactions mimic the iconic scenes between Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) and Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster). The juxtaposition of over-the-top dramatics with such a juvenile prank created comedic gold every single time. The parody isn’t just a smart homage to one of cinema’s most chilling films; it’s a perfect example of how South Park movie parodies can turn even the smallest film plots into epic, hilarious moments.
5. The Day After Tomorrow (2004)
The South Park season 9 episode 8 (“Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow”) takes the core premise of Roland Emmerich’s climate apocalypse movie and exaggerates it to hilarious extremes. The spoof aimed to prove how quickly humans could devolve into irrational chaos over something as trivial as a broken dam. The episode is a masterclass in parodying a movie.
4. Superhero Movies
The Coon episodes remain one of the funniest South Park movie parodies of all time because they brilliantly parody the rise of superhero franchises. From Cartman’s over-the-top Batman voice as “The Coon,” to the melodramatic backstories, the series pokes fun at how seriously superhero films take themselves. With the saturation of superhero movies and franchises in the last two decades, it’s unsurprising that South Park has parodied the genre several times. There are three episodes centered on superhero parody in season 13 and one in season 21.
3. Zombie Movies
“Night of the Living Homeless” (season 11, episode 7) masterfully parodies zombie apocalypse films, particularly George A. Romero’s zombie horror movies. However, it replaces flesh-eating zombies with desperate, slow-moving homeless people begging for money. The episode’s brilliance lies in how excellently it twists the visual and audio tropes of classic horror movies into something absurdly mundane and socially satirical.
2. The Sixth Sense (1999)
“The Death of Eric Cartman” (season 9, episode 6) is one of the highest-rated episodes of South Park. It parodies the classic Hollywood trope of a ghost with “finished business”—cue in The Sixth Sense, Ghost, and A Christmas Carol. When the boys decide to ignore Cartman for being too awful, he mistakenly believes he’s dead and becomes a ghost. This sets off a wildly exaggerated parody filled with fake remorse, misguided redemption arcs, and Cartman’s trademark narcissism.
1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Sitting in the top spot of the most hilarious South Park movie parodies is none other than season 6, episode 13 (“The Return of the Fellowship of the Ring to the Two Towers”). The episode seamlessly blends childhood innocence with epic fantasy tropes in a way only South Park can. This episode parodies Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy with such absurd precision that it captures the grandeur of the source material and the ridiculousness of the parody. Watching the boys embark on a “quest” to return a mistakenly swapped adult video puts Jackson’s films in a whole new light.
