South Park: 15 Best Characters, Ranked

April 5, 2024, 8:05 p.m.

Movies

South Park: 15 Best Characters, Ranked

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Summary South Park has a unique humor that pushes boundaries on taboo subjects with its diverse and boisterous characters.

Characters like Wendy, Mr. Mackey, and Butters add depth and humor to South Park's eccentric and comical world.

Despite controversial themes, South Park's stellar cast continues to make audiences laugh with absurd yet clever storylines.

Warning: This article discusses sexism, racism, anti-Semitism, and other mature themes.

South Park has an array of unique and boisterous characters, with some standing out more than others. Since its debut in 1997, the best South Park episodes continue to keep audiences laughing. South Park, a creation by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, follows the lives of Stan Marsh, Eric Cartman (Stone), Kenny McCormick, and Kyle Broflovski (Parker) in the small town of Park County, Colorado. There are also plenty of amazing supporting characters in South Park that the gang often cross paths with, such as their parents, teachers, and friends at school.

South Park is very aware of the criticism it faces, especially because several storylines push the boundaries of particularly taboo subjects, such as race, sexuality, and politics. However, this is also a core part of the show's humor, which is reflected in its characters. With South Park season 27 on the way, the show continues to speak out about the state of the world in absurd yet comical ways through the voices of its stellar cast of characters.

Voice Actor Characters They Voice Matt Stone Stan Marsh, Eric Cartman, Terrance, Butters Stotch Trey Parker Kenny McCormick, Kyle Broflovski, Philip, Randy Marsh, Mr. Garrison, Satan, Mr. Mackey, Mr. Hankey, Jimmy Valmer Isaac Hayes Chef April Stewart Wendy

15 Wendy Testaburger

More Than Just Stan's Girlfriend

Although Wendy Testaburger (April Stewart) is often intense and difficult, she also provides some brilliant moments between her and Stan. Wendy is introduced as Stan's love interest in South Park, and his girlfriend spends a lot of time exhibiting jealousy toward anyone who gets close to him. However, her funniest moments always involve Stan throwing up in her face, which happens for the first time in the pilot and continues repeatedly throughout the show. In later seasons of South Park, Wendy becomes more involved in political activism and truly becomes her own character, especially outside of her relationship with Stan.

14 Ike Broflovski

South Park's Swearing Infant

Kyle's baby brother, Ike, is adopted and originally from Canada, which is why he shares similar facial characteristics with Terrance and Philip. Ike makes frequent appearances throughout the show, although he hasn't a lot to say. When Ike does speak, it's usually a hysterical flurry of swear words directed at his mother. Kyle is ultimately a supportive and loving sibling to Ike, but also finds him very irritating, so much so that he often tries to kick his brother across long stretches of space (just for the fun of it).

13 Terrance And Philip

Canada's Beavis And Butt-head

Terrance and Philip (Stone and Parker) are Canada's best comedy duo in South Park, and the pair have made several minor appearances throughout the show. According to Trey Parker in a season 1 DVD extra, Terrance and Philip are loosely based on him and Stone, but the creators also took inspiration from Beavis and Butt-head to build the characters. However, the first of the six South Park movies, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, sees Terrance and Philip in a more significant role. Although toilet humor isn't for everybody, each appearance from Terrance and Philip guarantees plenty of fart jokes.

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12 Mr. Mackey

Mmmkay?

Mr. Mackey (Parker) is one of the gang's teachers at South Park Elementary, and despite appearing to be a standard, boring school counselor, he still provides some brilliant, hilarious moments in South Park. Mackey drops a lot of small yet hysterical details about himself throughout the show that prove just how underrated he is as a character, such as his bizarre drug and sex habits, especially during his relationship with Ms. Choksondik (Parker). Although Mackey has plenty of iconic meltdowns in South Park, his best is during the episode "Elementary School Musical," shouting at the kids in their dental-themed costumes.

11 Mr. Hankey

A Festive Companion

Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo sings one of South Park's best original songs from his debut episode in season 1, which brings lots of Christmas cheer to those around him. Despite his sweet, wholesome personality, it's hard not to find Mr. Hankey a little disgusting, as he leaves a trail of feces behind him as he moves around. Mr. Hankey is last seen in the South Park episode "The Problem with a Poo," where he gets canceled by the town for a series of offensive tweets and ends up relocating to Springfield in a hilarious but brief The Simpsons crossover.

10 Jimmy Valmer

South Park's Resident Stand-Up Comedian

Jimmy (Parker) is incredibly ambitious, especially when it comes to his stand-up comedy, but he never lets his disability get in the way of his dreams. Jimmy uses crutches to support himself, although his condition is never specified in South Park. Although the show and its characters make plenty of jokes about his health and appearance, Jimmy's sense of humor and sharp tongue overpowers all of the offensive comments. Powered by intelligence and optimism, Jimmy is also the creator of an incredible viral joke about rapper Kanye West ironically not understanding humor, as seen in the season 13 episode "Fishsticks."

9 Mr. Garrison

Teacher Turned President

Mr. Garrison (Parker) is one of South Park's more controversial characters, especially because many of his storylines focus on his sexuality. In season 9, Garrison comes out as transgender and uses female pronouns until he re-transitions, identifying as male again in season 12. Garrison is often seen with a puppet on his hand, Mr. Hat, and his partner, Mr. Slave, giving the audience a glimpse into his unusual home life. Although Garrison is primarily a teacher, he also serves as the President of the United States after being elected in season 20, adopting a suspiciously similar appearance to Donald Trump.

8 Satan

South Park's Devil Isn't As Evil As Many Would Expect

The King of Hell, Satan (Parker), is first introduced in the season 1 episode "Damien." Despite appearing to be the definition of evil, Satan is just like any other person trying to do their job, except his job is overseeing the worst people to have ever existed. Some of Satan's best moments occur in scenes during his complicated and dysfunctional relationship with Saddam Hussein (Stone), especially in South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. The character of Satan is killed off in the season 22 episode "Nobody Got Cereal?" where he then transcends to Heaven, finally escaping Hussein's manipulative abuse for good.

7 Chef

Park County's Advice Hub

South Park Elementary's Chef (Isaac Hayes) is the gang's biggest supporter, especially in the earlier seasons of South Park, and the best character for others to go to for advice. Chef's wisdom and relaxed persona are often a hindrance for him, too. A great example of this is in South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut when he gives Stan some inappropriate, sexual advice on how to win Wendy and immediately realizes that he's speaking without thinking. Chef's last appearance is in season 10, as Hayes left South Park after protesting the Scientology content of the episode "Trapped in the Closet."

6 Stan Marsh

The Black Sheep Of Park County

Stan is the gang's voice of reason in South Park, and a lot of his storylines are more mature in comparison to the others, like in the episode "You're Getting Old," when he gets cynical over his birthday. However, Stan's funniest storylines in South Park are also some of the show's best, as his stricter, more sensible personality is a brilliant contrast in absurd and ridiculous situations. Unlike most of Park County, Stan is relatively level-headed, and he frequently voices this fact to various adults, very much aware that he doesn't think in the same way as those around him.

5 Kyle Broflovski

Cartman's Greatest Rival

Kyle is similar to Stan in the sense that he doesn't succumb to South Park's chaos as easily as others. However, Kyle will often do something petty in order to make a point. One example of this is when Kyle steals Cartman's girlfriend, Heidi (Jessica Makinson) because he's fed up with watching Cartman take advantage of her. Some of Kyle's best moments come during moments of conflict between him and Cartman, and the two often fight, mainly because of Cartman's repetitive and cruel comments about Kyle's Jewish heritage and songs about his overbearing mother, Sheila (Mona Marshall).

4 Kenny McCormick

More Lives Than A Cat

Kenny is easily South Park's most recognizable character, mainly because of the iconic quote, "Oh my god, they killed Kenny! You b*stards!" Kenny dies many times in South Park, and it's a frequent running gag throughout the show, although this joke is seen less often in later seasons. He doesn't speak in the traditional sense and primarily communicates in muffled sounds on account of his large, orange hood. However, in South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, Kenny's face and voice are finally shown. Despite a lack of dialogue, this doesn't stop Kenny from being hilarious, usually when audiences least expect it.

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3 Randy Marsh

Not Your Average Father

Although the gang's parents are all important characters in South Park, Stan's father, Randy (Parker), stands out. He is clearly experiencing some sort of crisis but embraces this stage of his life in several hilarious ways. Randy's best storyline occurs throughout season 18 as he takes on the alter ego of pop star Lorde, and his wild attempts at hiding his true identity result in some of South Park's funniest moments. Randy is a comical delight, but his best quality is as a father, and he often tries to bond with Stan in different ways, although the execution usually fails.

2 Eric Cartman

The Ultimate Sociopath In South Park

Although it's fitting for South Park's humor, Eric Cartman is a terrible person all around, but that's why he's such a stand out. Throughout the show, Cartman takes every opportunity to screw over his friends and family for his own gain and is the epitome of selfishness. For example, in the episode "Cherokee Hair Tampons," Kyle needs a kidney transplant, but even though Cartman is a perfect donor match, refuses to help unless he's paid 10 million dollars. However, Cartman also faces criticism for regularly making racist and sexist jokes and, in particular, his abusive behavior toward his mother.

Cartman's voice is another notable part of his character.

Cartman's voice is another notable part of his character. His constant whining can be both irritating and entertaining, especially when he's arguing with Kyle. Despite his many personality flaws, it's hard not to root for Cartman, especially because he always creates stupidly funny, albeit nonsensical and foolish, situations in South Park. Even when Cartman's crazy schemes fail, he always moves on to something bigger and better and is always ready to cause as much destruction as possible along the way.

1 Butters Stotch

The Anti-Cartman

While there are plenty of great characters in South Park, Butters (Stone) is the best for several reasons. The sweet and innocent Butters appears as a background character in the earlier seasons, but in season 5, he gets more screen time. Butters is essentially the fifth member of the gang, and his fresh face, optimistic viewpoint, and trustful approach to life are a great contrast in comparison to the likes of Cartman. A great example of this is in the episode "Make Love, Not Warcraft," which also includes Butters' viral quote, "I'm playing Hello Kitty Island Adventure."

Despite Butters' adorable and naive personality, he still gets caught up in some truly awful situations.

Despite Butters' adorable and naive personality, he still gets caught up in some truly awful situations. Throughout the show, he is hung by his underwear from a flag pole and is forced to fake his own death. Butters' parents are also horrific to him, and at one point, they even sell him to Paris Hilton. He runs away to avoid this, and even though the sale falls through, Butters is grounded for his actions. Butters' trusting nature gets him in a lot of trouble, but his engaging storylines and all-around delightful demeanor make him the best South Park character overall.