‘South Park’ Releases Orchestral Rendition of ‘Chocolate Salty Balls’ for 25th Anniversary (TV News Roundup)

“South Park” is celebrating its upcoming 25th anniversary with the announcement of a new episode set to premiere on March 2, as well as a 30-piece orchestral rendition of its hit song, “Chocolate Salty Balls.”

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TRAILERS PREMIERE DATES PROMOTIONS ACQUISTIONS DEALS LATE NIGHT

The song was featured on the show’s first season, and went on to claim the No. 1 spot on the U.K. charts. It was written by “South Park” co-creator Trey Parker, who, along with Matt Stone, went on to write the Tony Award-winning musical “The Book of Mormon.” “Chocolate Salty Balls” was originally performed by the late Isaac Hayes, who played the character of Chef on the series for its first nine seasons.

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“South Park” launched on Comedy Central on Aug. 13, 1997, co-created by Stone and Parker. Parker, Stone, Anne Garefino and Frank C. Agnone II are the show’s executive producers. Producers are Eric Stough, Adrien Beard, Bruce Howell and Vernon Chatman.

Watch the orchestral performance below:

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Also in today’s TV News Roundup:

TRAILERS

Netflix debuted the trailer for Taylor Tomlinson’s “Look at You,” the comedian’s follow-up special to “Quarter-Life Crisis,” which premiered in 2020. Filmed at the Wilbur Theater in Boston in December, the special sees Tomlinson addressing her struggles with mental health, grief and dating. “Look at You” is directed by Kristian Mercado, with executive producers Tomlinson, Judi Marmel and John Bravakis. The special is set to premiere on March 8. Watch the trailer below.

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Showtime revealed the official trailer for its upcoming sci-fi series “The Man Who Fell to the Earth,” starring Academy Award nominees Chiwetel Ejiofor and Naomie Harris. Ejiofor stars as an alien that falls to Earth at a turning point for the world, in the story based on the 1963 novel of the same name and the 1976 film starring David Bowie. The series also features actors Jimmi Simpson, Rob Delaney, Sonya Cassidy, Joana Ribeiro, Annelle Olaleye, Kate Mulgrew, Clarke Peters and Bill Nighy. “The Man Who Fell to the Earth” is executive produced by Alex Kurtzman, Jenny Lumet, John Hlavin, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly, Heather Kadin, Aaron Baiers, Ejiofor, Rola Bauer and Françoise Guyonnet. The series premieres on April 24 at 10 p.m. ET/PT with two back-to-back episodes. Watch the trailer below.

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PREMIERE DATES

Amazon Prime Video announced that its young adult thriller series, “The Wilds,” will premiere its second season on May 6. The second season follows the group of girls that has been stranded on a deserted island, and reveals a separate group of teenage boys, all of whom are there as part of an elaborate social experiment. “The Wilds” is created by Sarah Streicher, who serves as executive producer alongside showrunner Amy Harris, the late Jamie Tarses of FanFare and Dylan Clark and Brian Williams for Dylan Clark Productions.

PROMOTIONS

ABC News’ “Nightline” has promoted Ashan Singh to the role of multiplatform reporter, executive producer Eman Varoqua announced today. Since joining the program six years ago, Singh has worked as a production associate, an on-air contributor and as a segment producer. In his work, Singh covers new and emerging technologies like NFTs, communities impacted by global events, pop stars and everything in between. Singh has also appeared in pieces for “Good Morning America” and “ABC News Live Prime.”

ACQUISTIONS

Roku announced that Australian drama series “The Newsreader” will debut in the U.S. as a Roku original on The Roku Channel. The series will premiere March 18. The Roku Channel acquired “The Newsreader” from Entertainment One (eOne), the series’ international distributor. Set in 1986 in the world of broadcast news, “The Newsreader” follows young reporter Dale Jennings (Sam Reid) and star newsreader Helen Norville (Anna Torv) as the two cover a range of prominent events — including Halley’s Comet and the complexities of the AIDS crisis. In addition to Reid and Torv, the series also stars Robert Taylor, William McInnes, Chum Ehelepola, Michelle Lim Davidson, Stephen Peacocke, Chai Hansen and Marg Downey. “The Newsreader” is produced by Werner Film Productions, for the ABC in Australia, with major financial support from Screen Australia, the ABC and Film Victoria. The series is created and written by Michael Lucas, who also produces, and directed by Emma Freeman. Executive producers include Joanna Werner, Stuart Menzies, Sally Riley and Brett Sleigh. See first look images below.

DEALS

Made Up Stories, the production company of Bruna Papandrea, and Kristen Campo have acquired the rights to the upcoming novel “The Latecomer.” The book, from New York Times bestselling author Jean Hanff Korelitz (“You Should Have Known,” “Admission”), is set to publish in May this year and focuses on Phoebe, the youngest member of a dysfunctional family, as she uncovers secrets that have been hidden for generations. The book is set to be adapted into a limited series, with Hanff Korelitz executive producing alongside Papandrea, Campo, Made Up Stories’ Steve Hutensky, and Casey Haver in partnership with Endeavor Content. Hanff Korelitz’s previous novel “You Should Have Known,” was adapted into the popular 2020 HBO limited series “The Undoing.”

Newly formed production company Jane of All Trades Productions has picked up the rights to the life story of Melvin McNair, an aspiring Baseball player in 1972 who attempted to hijack a Delta flight in order to join the Algerian Black Panthers movement. McNair was indicted on federal air privacy charges along with his wife and three co-conspirators, and has been living in France as an exile ever since. Jane of All Trades heads Kymber Allen, a long time awards consultant and event producer, and actress Tracey Cherelle Jones will produce a limited series based on McNair’s story, with the man himself having sold them the rights. Sean Barclay at The Gersh Agency represent Allen and Jones.