Comedy Central has postponed the debut of “South Park” Season 27 by two weeks, moving the animated staple’s first episode from 9 July to 23 July. The network gave no formal reason, but the shift comes as parent company Paramount Global finalises its merger with Skydance, a deal that has complicated streaming-rights negotiations for the long-running series. Following the change, Comedy Central also rescheduled the second season of Andy Samberg and Neil Campbell’s “Digman!”—originally slated to follow “South Park” on 9 July—to 23 July at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT, preserving its position directly behind the flagship program. “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone blamed the corporate merger for the delay, saying in a statement that the process is disrupting production and distribution plans, even as they continue work on new episodes. Both shows remain exclusive to Comedy Central in the United States.