South Park will for the most part steer clear of Donald Trump jokes from now on, one of the hit US show's creators has said.

Trey Parker, who voices four of the main characters - including teacher Mr Garrison who embodies South Park's President Trump parody - said the series would have fewer gags from now on after falling into the "trap" of becoming a show based on mocking the US leader.

The long-running Comedy Central show celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.

Parker said he and co-creator Matt Stone want the show to return to its roots in its forthcoming season.

"We would do an entire season and there would be one moment that played off something that had just happened and people would go, 'South Park is the show that does that'. And that's just not true. We're not," he told The Los Angeles Times.


"We did start to become that, though, especially the last season.

"We fell into the same trap that Saturday Night Live fell into, where it was like, 'Dude, we're just becoming CNN now'.

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"We're becoming: 'Tune in to see what we're going to say about Trump'. Matt and I hated it but we got stuck in it somehow.

"This season I want to get back to... the bread and butter of South Park: kids being kids and being ridiculous and outrageous, but not 'did you see what Trump did last night?'

"We probably could put up billboards - 'Look what we're going to do to Trump next week!' - and get crazy ratings. But I just don't care."

Parker also said he did not think the US President was "intentionally funny", but was using the same comedic art the show does - "being outrageous and taking things to the extreme to get a reaction out of people" - to drive his support.

South Park has seen Mr Garrison campaign for president on the basis he would build a wall to keep out Canadians, in an episode titled Where My Country Gone?

He was also shown trying to get out of the election, realising he was not qualified to be in the White House, with South Park residents then stunned by the news of his victory in Oh Jeez.