Cruise later denied the claims and the episode eventually aired again, but it remains one of the meatier controversies in South Park history.
The episode shockingly resulted in the departure of Chef voice actor Isaac Hayes, who was a Scientologist.
It was also rumored that Tom Cruise stopped a scheduled rebroadcasting of the episode when he allegedly refused to do publicity for Mission: Impossible III if the repeat aired.
(The M:I movies are distributed by Paramount, which shares Viacom as a parent company with Comedy Central.)