10 Funniest Characters On South Park, Ranked – TVLine

If you go down to “South Park” and have yourself a time, you’re guaranteed to see the following: friendly faces everywhere, humble folks without temptation and, of course, some of the funniest animated characters in TV history.

From the halls of South Park Elementary School to the streets of Historic Shi Pa Town, the residents of this iconic Colorado zip code have kept viewers laughing for nearly 30 years. But which character is the funniest of them all? That’s what we’re here to figure out today.

As you can imagine, assembling our ranking of the show’s funniest characters was no easy task. With more than 27 seasons and 300 episodes under its belt, “South Park” has introduced us to some of the most unique and irreverent characters ever to grace the small screen. For the purposes of this list, we favored long-running characters over one-off guests, attempting to take the entire series — including the movie and Paramount+ specials — into consideration.

And it should go without saying, but we’ll say it anyway: This is just our personal ranking. Yours will be different, as will anyone’s. Let’s all just have some fun here, OK?

Read on for TVLine’s ranking of the 10 funniest “South Park” characters, then drop a comment with your thoughts. Who would be on the top of your personal list?

We have to begin this one by addressing the elephant in the room, and no, it’s not the elephant that made love to a pig. That’s a very different elephant.

There’s no easy way to say it: Isaac Hayes’ departure from “South Park” was a messy affair. A statement was released on his behalf in 2006, explaining that he was leaving the show due to its “intolerance and bigotry” towards Scientology, but in 2025, Hayes’ son alleged that his father — who had recently suffered a debilitating stroke in 2006 — never would have left the show of his own accord. That decision, Hayes’ son claims, was made by his father’s team at the time, many of whom were supposedly Scientologists.

Prior to the character’s brutal demise in the Season 10 premiere, however, Chef was a crucial cog in the “South Park” machine, and easily one of its most consistent sources of comedy. Whether he was singing one of his classic slow jams (as only Hayes could) or attempting to simplify an adult concept for the curious students in his lunchroom, Chef was a staple of the show’s earlier seasons. And even though we hate the way Hayes’ exit went down, at least creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone crafted a hilariously twisted send-off — after being brainwashed into saying unspeakable things by a Scientology-esque organization, Chef fell into a canyon and was mauled by wild animals — that gave us one last laugh with the beloved lunchroom king.

“South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone intended for Towelie to be the “lamest character ever,” but the joke’s on them, because we’ve been riding high on this absorbent little stoner since he was first genetically engineered back in 2001. Initially conceived as a satire of characters created purely for marketing purposes, Towelie has evolved into a beloved South Park resident, giving us some of the show’s funniest episodes. His Disney-adorable appearance makes his drug-fueled adventures even darker, like when he became addicted to computer cleaner (Season 14’s “Crippled Summer”) in a twisted homage to the A&E reality show “Intervention.” On a lighter note, we can’t even hear the song “Funkytown” without imagining Towelie recreating the tune on a security keypad. And if you disagree with Towelie’s inclusion in this list, well, we can only think of one logical comeback: “No, you’re a towel!”

Some of the funniest “South Park” characters are also the simplest. Just look at Mr. Hankey, a talking, singing poop that visits children with a lot of fiber in their diet at Christmastime. This instant holiday icon made quite the splash (so to speak) in his self-titled Season 1 episode, leaving an indelible mark on the fandom — and a less savory mark all over Kyle’s bathroom walls — with his squeaky voice, friendly demeanor and dark humor.

And Mr. Hankey only became funnier the more he was fleshed out in future episodes, like Season 4’s “A Very Crappy Christmas,” which lifted the lid (tee-hee) on Mr. Hankey’s personal life, including his tumultuous relationship with his alcoholic wife… who’s also a poop. As are their children, one of whom is named Cornwallis because, well, he was born with a piece of corn in his head. Look, no one is going to accuse Mr. Hankey of being high-brow comedy, but if you’re looking for one of the show’s funniest characters, just say, “Howdy ho!”

After being briefly introduced in the first season of “South Park,” these flatulent Canadian comedians got their big break in the Season 2 premiere, which promised to reveal the identity of Cartman’s father… only to blindside fans with an unrelated episode entirely devoted to Terrance and Phillip’s shenanigans. It was the ultimate prank for creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone to pull on the show’s captive audience, and Terrance and Phillip’s star only rose from there, with the duo playing a key role in the show’s 1999 big-screen debut “South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut.” What would that movie have been without Terrance and Phillip’s timeless (and totally family-friendly) ode to uncles everywhere?

Later seasons of “South Park” use the duo more sparingly than it once did, but they’re always a sight for sore eyes, whether they’re parodying the Royal Wedding (Season 15’s “Royal Pudding”), feuding with the Q*eef Sisters (Season 13’s “Eat, Pray, Q*eef”), or pulling back the curtain of their dark relationship (Season 5’s “Terrance and Phillip: Behind the Blow”). Have naysayers criticized Terrance and Phillip’s fart humor as being a little one-note? Sure. But isn’t it a pretty great note?

First of all, wow, what a terrific audience. Second, while we can’t speak to the tastefulness of most of the show’s jokes about Jimmy, the resident stand-up comedian of South Park Elementary absolutely deserves a place on this list. Remember when Jimmy joined the Crips in Season 7, unknowingly thrusting himself into a gang war? That had us feeling cool like a fool in a swimming pool. Or what about the time he was determined to lose his virginity ahead of the school talent show, inadvertently linking up with a classy gal named Nut-Gobbler and helping her escape an abusive pimp? And how about when he caved to peer pressure, turning to steroids for a boost at the Special Olympics in Season 8? Like so many “South Park” characters, Jimmy has really evolved during his time on the show, always leading with humor.

With his goofy eyes and lollipop physique, South Park Elementary School’s beloved guidance counselor doesn’t even have to open his mouth to be funny, m’kay? But thank goodness he does, because what Mr. Mackey lacks in effective counseling skills, he more than makes up for in comedic timing. And have you heard the man sing? His informational ditty about replacements for swear words in “South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut” was robbed of a Grammy!

As longtime “South Park” viewers know, Mr. Mackey’s timid demeanor is merely a front for the beast within. Once he reaches his breaking point, as those poor kindergarteners learned during Season 15’s ill-fated school play about tooth decay, all bets are off. And we’re still trying to forget his response when Stan tried to intervene in his hoarding during a very special Season 14 episode.

Unlike most of the characters on this list, Butters has no idea how funny he really is. And why would he? Everything out of this precious child’s mouth is completely genuine, occasionally to his detriment — like when he played “Inspector Butters” to find out why his dad kept frequenting a bath house, or when his perfectly innocent tap-dancing routine resulted in several accidental deaths.

Watching Butters navigate hellish scenarios with his sunny disposition and relentless naiveté is always a good time, whether he’s unknowingly (but fairly) running a prostitution ring at his elementary school, or his parents are selling him to Paris Hilton as her new pet du jour. If you’re looking for someone to make you laugh when you’re feeling down, well, everyone knows it’s Butters.

We have no idea how this certified lunatic is allowed to work as an elementary school teacher, but we’re sure glad that Mr. Garrison still has a place in the classroom. Who else would teach the next generation about evolution being “a bunch of bull cr*p,” or that you shouldn’t trust anything that bleeds for seven days and doesn’t die? And who else would constantly involve his students in his personal drama, including his complicated relationships with his revolving door of teaching assistants — Mr. Hat, Mr. Twig, and, of course, Mr. Slave?

One of the show’s more problematic characters, which is saying a lot for this show, you never know what manner of depravity Mr. Garrison is going to spew at any moment. We’ll fully admit that his foray into politics in Season 20 lasted way too long, marking a rare comedic miss for the longtime character, but even that wasn’t enough to knock him off our list. With two decades of pure gold already under his belt, he had saved up plenty of good will with the show’s fans.

Let’s be clear about one thing: We don’t co-sign anything that comes out of Cartman’s mouth. To call this kid the Devil would be an insult to the real Satan, who’s actually a pretty decent guy, as we’ve learned over the seasons. Cartman is mean, greedy, racist, homophobic, antisemitic, sexist, and generally represents the darkest parts of humanity. The catch? He’s also really, really funny.

When “South Park” premiered in the late 1990s, it was Cartman’s whiny, pig-like voice that kids across America were imitating at school, maddening their teachers as they spouted classic lines like “Respect my authority!” and “Screw you guys, I’m going home.” And while Cartman’s humor tends to come at the expense of others, we can’t imagine a world without his love for Casa Bonita, his refusal to share his pot pie, or his disdain for the common hippie. Today, we raise a Cheesy Poof in his honor.

Besides being TV’s funniest geologist (at least to our knowledge), the best thing about Stan’s dad is his commitment to the bit. Any bit. This is a man who gave himself “a little bit of cancer” in order to obtain a medicinal marijuana card. This is a man who literally started COVID-19 after a wild night in Wuhan with Mickey Mouse and a pangolin. And do we need to rehash the “ghost” incident at the internet refugee camp?

You get the idea. This man is unhinged in the best way, making him the perfect catalyst for some of the show’s funniest moments: the time he rescued “Staaan?!” from a tight spot in “World of Warcraft,” his infamous appearance on “Wheel of Fortune,” that brief time he masqueraded as British pop star Lorde — we could go on all day.

At this point, we’re just glad that Randy has finally left Tegridy Farms in his rearview mirror, so he can get back to raising hell right where he’s needed most.