How South Park Was Able To Get Radiohead To Cameo In Its Most Disturbing Episode

With over 330 episodes produced since its premiere in 1997, Comedy Central’s groundbreaking adult animated sitcom “South Park” has often left viewers in both stitches and awe for roughly three decades. 

Arguably the most disturbing “South Park” episode, Season 5’s “Scott Tenorman Must Die,” centers on Eric Cartman (Trey Parker), who is the butt of an embarrassing prank by the Scott Tenorman, in which we see the already foul-mouthed, hateful child plan for the ultimate revenge involving chili and the band Radiohead. Cartman’s revenge against Scott culminates with the shocking revelation that he arranged to have the boy’s parents shot and killed, with their remains cooked in chili to be fed to Scott. To add insult to injury, Radiohead, Scott’s favorite band, is present to make fun of him for crying. 

All five members of Radiohead — Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Colin Greenwood, Ed O’Brien, and Philip Selway — voice the “South Park” versions of themselves. Series co-creator Matt Stone recalled meeting members of the band at a party, and the interest in bringing them on was mutual. Stone told Pitchfork that the band was on tour in Santa Barbara, Calif., and he drove over to direct them. 

“If you’re working with a band and you really want to work them into the episode, you’ve got to say to them, ‘Look, we need you around every day and on Tuesday night all night because we need you to do voices as we’re changing stuff,'” Stone said. “So we worked them in at a point where you can make it so they’re in the show but not where you have to produce the show around them.”

Although “South Park” is notable for being one of the most biting social satires on American television, it is also widely praised for its musicality. Creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have heavily involved music not just within the show, but also on their other projects, including the series’ only theatrical film, “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut,” “Team America: World Police,” and the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical “The Book of Mormon.”

With that in mind, “South Park” has hired numerous other musicians to lend their voices to the most ridiculous fictional town in television animation. For the first decade of the series’ run, Grammy-winning musician Isaac Hayes lent his voice to Chef, one of the only trustworthy adult figures at South Park Elementary School. Hayes performed some original songs written by Parker and Stone, most notably, “Chocolate Salty Balls.” The the Season 2 episode “Chef Aid” also features numerous musicians — including Elton John, Ozzy Osbourne, Meat Loaf, Primus, and Ween — voicing themselves.

And “South Park” continues to make waves in 2025. Earlier this summer, Trey Parker and Matt Stone signed a stunning five-year deal with Paramount+ worth $1.5 billion, making it the exclusive streaming home for the series, with 50 new episodes expected over five years. With Seasons 27 and 28, the series lampooned the second Trump administration through a serialized narrative that has even garnered attention from the White House. Another notable 2025 episode parodied Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, a month prior to his assassination.