After the movie's first scene, I really wondered if you could keep up that level of really sharp satire. Did you ever think, "Ah, maybe we shouldn't put in the dick and asshole stuff, because we could make a piece of art that anyone could see and appreciate"?

Stone: [Laughs.] Nope. I wish that would've occurred to us earlier.

Parker: Although the tone of the movie did change completely after shooting that scene, because we shot that scene first. The script was written ... a bit more like "South Park," but even a little more jokey than "South Park," and I think it's good that we wrote it that way, because Paramount had to say, "OK, comedy? Oh, this is a funny script." Whereas, this movie, as a script, there are so many times where, if you were reading the script, you'd say, "Where's the joke?" Because so much of the joke is coming off of [the marionettes] trying to do drama. So we had way more jokey-jokes in the script, more like fucking Adam Sandler jokes -- I mean, not that bad, but ...

Stone: But joke jokes.

Parker: And after shooting that first scene, we were like, Dude, we've gotta take all the jokes out of this movie.

Stone: Then we did a pass where there was not a single joke or laugh in the whole movie, it was kind of just a fucked-up, serious, weird satire. But that was no fun to watch, and we're no good at doing that kind of thing.

Parker: So then we started putting all the pussy and dick stuff in.

Stone: But then it became, saying that kind of stuff, but with the serious music, and the collision of the music and the tone? That became what the movie was about. I think that most people will get that, but there will be people that don't get that. And if you don't get that central conceit of the movie, you'll just hate the movie more and more and more.

Yeah, but screw those people, right?

Stone: Well, I agree, but that's what people have to get, or they're gonna be like, "What the fuck is this crap?" And that's generational.

Not spelling it all out clearly, though, makes it so much better than it would be if you connected all the dots.

Parker: Oh, yeah. For sure.

Stone: But I also think that's generational, because 85-year-olds didn't grow up watching "Top Gun" and all the other movies that have that kind of stupid structure seared into them.

I have to ask you quickly about the letter from Sean Penn (who, along with other Hollywood political activists like Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon, is satirized in the film), which was posted on Matt Drudge ...

Parker: We got it the day before, actually. He was nice enough to send it to us before he sent it to the world.

Stone: I remember when I got it, thinking that it read like a fucking open letter. It doesn't really read like it's really to us. That was my first thing; I was like, This doesn't read like a private letter.

And then the next day it was an open letter.

Stone: Yeah! The next day it was open.

Parker: I mean, I just don't understand. If he really is pissed, why would he do us that huge of a favor? I mean, seriously, there is nothing he could've done to help this movie more.

Stone: He just proved that we nailed him so perfectly in the movie. Because if you read the letter what he says in the movie is exactly like what he would say in the movie.

It was actually the marionette that wrote you that letter! I like how he sets you two up in the letter as such losers. I remember seeing you at a party. I remember how you dropped my name to appear witty ...

Parker: By the way, we've never met him. You do meet a lot of people. We've met a lot, and maybe we've even forgotten some, but I would remember Sean Penn. We never met Sean Penn, either one of us.

Stone: But when you read it, the letter comes from such a high place of arrogance, you know, [deep, serious voice] "You guys are young guys! If you don't have children, you can't say anything about anything!" And the whole voting thing. All we ever said was that we thought that uninformed people should not vote -- on either side of the political spectrum. It doesn't matter who you're gonna vote for. If you really don't know who you're gonna vote for, or are uninformed, or haven't really thought about it? Just stay home. Don't let people fucking shame you into going to the polls.

Parker: If you have absolutely no idea, fuck it.

Stone: If you really don't know or you're just going to vote for George Bush because he's already in office, or you're gonna vote for John Kerry because he's on the cover of Rolling Stone, don't do that. That's lame. Just stay home. That's all we ever said.

Publicist: We really have to wrap up now.

Well, in parting, do you have a special message for all those undecided voters out there?

Stone: Stay home.

Parker: Don't vote!

Stone: And it's no big deal. If you don't want to vote, you don't have to. Fuck that vote or die shit. I hate that.

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