Eric "Butters" Stough (born July 31, 1972) is an American animator and producer. He is best known as the animation director and a producer on the television series South Park. Born in Evergreen, Colorado, Stough attended the University of Colorado at Boulder and graduated in 1995 with a degree in film. A longtime friend of Trey Parker, he has worked with him and Matt Stone on most of their projects, including South Park, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, Orgazmo, Team America: World Police and the Broadway musical The Book of Mormon. Stough has won five Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on South Park, as well as a Peabody Award. He was the inspiration for the character of Butters Stotch on South Park. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Biography from TMDB.
- July 31, 1972 (54)
- Evergreen, Colorado, USA
- Producer and actor
- 11 on MovieCove · 14 credits in all
Known for
What are Eric Stough's films like?
Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Power.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 5 · Wry 1 · Earnest 2
Light 6 · Serious 2 · Dark 0
A split, not a type: Grounded 1 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 4
Gentle 1 · Charged 7 · Intense 0
Steady 3 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 2
Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 7
Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 2
A split, not a type: Casual 5 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 6 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 0
Resolved 7 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy1
- Bittersweet2
- Ambiguous5
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Eric Stough's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 10 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Paramount+ (9).
- South Park (1997) · actor, director, producer
- South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999) · animation director
- South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023) · producer
- South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021) · producer
- South Park: Post COVID (2021) · producer
- South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023) · producer
- South Park: The End of Obesity (2024) · producer
- South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022) · producer
- South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022) · producer
Subscription and free streaming for Eric Stough's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
14 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
South Park: Post COVID(2021)
Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films
South Park: Imaginationland (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)
Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
Revenge of the Roadkill Rabbit (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

Orgazmo(1997)
Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films
South Park(1997)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows
South Park: The Unaired Pilot (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)
Career shape
A full career of 14 titles from 1996 to 2024.

Highest rated
6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park (2011)

Most popular right now
South Park: The End of Obesity (2024)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Eric Stough's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 87th percentile, the median of all 10; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 86th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up8
- 50th to 74th3
Shape of the crowd
None of their 11 titles divides audiences: 6 are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved5
- Crowd Pleaser6
Reviewers score the acting 64/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles; fans 71, detractors 46. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Eric Stough's work okay for kids?
Across up to 7 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, sex & nudity, profanity and alcohol & drugs run heavier than most films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Eric Stough work with?
People who share at least 2 of Eric Stough's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Trey Parker shares the most, 8.
Directors
- Trey ParkerShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021), 6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park (2011)See all 8 shared titles with Trey Parker

Writers
- Matt StoneShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021), 6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park (2011)See all 8 shared titles with Matt Stone

- Brian GradenShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 7 shared titles with Brian Graden

Actors
- April StewartShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 7 shared titles with April Stewart

- Kimberly BrooksShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 7 shared titles with Kimberly Brooks

- Adrien BeardShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021), 6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park (2011)See all 8 shared titles with Adrien Beard

- Betty Boogie ParkerShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 5 shared titles with Betty Boogie Parker

Composers and editors
- Jamie DunlapShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 7 shared titles with Jamie Dunlap
- Giancarlo GanzianoShared titles: South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 2 shared titles with Giancarlo Ganziano

Producers
- Anne GarefinoShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021), 6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park (2011)See all 8 shared titles with Anne Garefino

- Frank C. Agnone IIShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021), 6 Days to Air: The Making of South Park (2011)See all 8 shared titles with Frank C. Agnone II
- Bruce HowellShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 7 shared titles with Bruce Howell

- Daryl SanctonShared titles: South Park: The End of Obesity (2024), South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023), South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023), South Park: The Streaming Wars (2022), South Park: The Streaming Wars Part 2 (2022), South Park: Post COVID (2021), South Park: Post COVID: The Return of COVID (2021)See all 7 shared titles with Daryl Sancton
