South Park duo's new project

South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are writing a Broadway musical about Mormons.

The Book of Mormon, which will open in New York next March, is a collaboration with Robert Lopez, one of the creators of Avenue Q.

The plot will revolve around two Mormon missionaries sent to Uganda, alongside the story of Joseph Smith, founder of the Church of Latter-day Saints.

Parker said: ‘There's a lot of Mormon stuff in our work because Matt and I both grew up around a lot of Mormons. I've never met a Mormon I didn't like. They're really nice people. They're so Disney. They're so Rodgers and Hammerstein.’

The pair have taken on the Mormons before, with an episode in South Park’s seventh series revolving around a family of ultra-nice believers moving to the town.

It was dubbed one of the ten most offensive episodes of the show, while the Church of Latter-day Saints called it a ‘gross portrayal of Church history’.

Meanwhile, the 200th episode of South Park airs this week, with its UK debut on Comedy Central tomorrow night. In the show, the town faces a class action lawsuit as every celebrity the series has ridiculed in its 14 year history seeks revenge.

Published: 15 Apr 2010