SpongeBob SquarePants (film series)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
SpongeBob SquarePants films
Logotype created for the 2015 film The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water.
Logotype for the second film
Directed byStephen Hillenburg (1)
Paul Tibbitt (2)
Tim Hill (3)
TBA (4)
Liza Johnson (Saving Bikini Bottom)
Written bySee below
Based on
SpongeBob SquarePants
by
  • Stephen Hillenburg
Produced byStephen Hillenburg (1)
Julia Pistor (1)
Paul Tibbitt (2)
Mary Parent (2)
Ryan Harris (3)
StarringTom Kenny
Bill Fagerbakke
Rodger Bumpass
Clancy Brown
Mr. Lawrence
Jill Talley
Carolyn Lawrence
Mary Jo Catlett
Lori Alan
Narrated byTom Kenny (1, 3)
Tim Hill (3)
Music byGregor Narholz (1)
John Debney (2)
Hans Zimmer (3)
Steve Mazzaro (3)
Production
companies
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
2004 (1)
2015 (2)
2020 (3)
TBA (4)
TBA (Saving Bikini Bottom)
Running time
270 minutes (1–3)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
BudgetTotal (3 films):
$164 million
Box officeTotal (3 films):
$463.6 million

SpongeBob SquarePants is an American animated television series that has been adapted into multiple theatrical films, beginning in 2004 with The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. The films are distributed by Paramount Pictures. The films feature the regular television voice cast: Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Rodger Bumpass, Clancy Brown, Mr. Lawrence, Jill Talley, Carolyn Lawrence, Mary Jo Catlett and Lori Alan.

Plans for a film based on the series began in 2001 when Nickelodeon and Paramount Pictures began approaching series creator Stephen Hillenburg for a theatrical feature. He initially refused their offers, but began developing it in 2002 upon completion of the show's third season. Hillenburg directed the film, which was theatrically released in the United States on November 19, 2004 to critical and commercial success. It was originally planned to act as the series finale, but the series success led to the production of more episodes. Sponge Out of Water, directed by former showrunner Paul Tibbitt, followed in 2015. A third film, Sponge on the Run, was directed by former show writer Tim Hill and released in 2020. A spin-off focused on the character Sandy Cheeks, titled Saving Bikini Bottom, is in active development and will be directed by Liza Johnson, while a fourth film has been announced.

Films[]

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004)[]

Main article: The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie

In this live-action animated comedy, Plankton's plan is to steal King Neptune's crown and send it to the dangerous Shell City, and then frame Mr. Krabs for the crime. SpongeBob and Patrick must journey to Shell City while facing several perils along the way to retrieve the crown to save Mr. Krabs from Neptune's wrath and Bikini Bottom from Plankton's tyranny.

The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water (2015)[]

Main article: The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water

The plot follows a pirate named Burger Beard (Antonio Banderas), who steals the Krabby Patty secret formula using a magical book that makes any text written upon it come true. After Bikini Bottom turns into an apocalyptic cesspool and the citizens turn against SpongeBob, he must team up with Plankton to find the formula and save Bikini Bottom. Later, SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, Mr. Krabs, Sandy and Plankton must travel to the surface to confront Burger Beard and get the formula back before Bikini Bottom is completely destroyed.

The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (2020)[]

Main article: The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run

A third film was released in Canadian theatres on August 14, 2020[1] followed by a limited video on demand release and Paramount+ release on March 4, 2021.[2][3] The film was directed by Tim Hill, who also wrote the screenplay with Michael Kvamme[4][5] from a story by Aaron Springer, Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger.[6] The show's principal voice actors—Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Rodger Bumpass, Clancy Brown, Mr. Lawrence, Jill Talley, Carolyn Lawrence, Mary Jo Catlett and Lori Alan— reprised their roles.[7] The film depicts how SpongeBob met his friends for the first time at a summer camp. The film uses full CGI animation provided by Mikros Image for underwater sequences.[8] On January 23, 2019, it was confirmed that production on the film had officially begun.[9]

Saving Bikini Bottom (TBA)[]

In May 2021, a spin-off Sandy Cheeks feature film was announced to be in development from Nickelodeon for streaming television, to be directed by Liza Johnson from a script written by Kaz and Tom J. Stern and described as a hybrid feature that will put the animated title character into a live-action setting.[10] On August 12, 2021, the title of the movie was revealed as Saving Bikini Bottom.[11]

On August 16, 2021, it was revealed that plans to film Saving Bikini Bottom in Los Alamos were scrapped due to rewrites of the script.[12][13]

Untitled fourth SpongeBob film (TBA)[]

In an August 2021 video interview, Nickelodeon CEO, Brian Robbins, has mentioned that "there's a new SpongeBob [film] in the works".[14]

Cast and characters[]

Further information: List of SpongeBob SquarePants characters and List of SpongeBob SquarePants cast members
Characters Films
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Sponge Out of Water Sponge on the Run
SpongeBob SquarePants Tom Kenny Tom Kenny
Antonio Raul Corbo
(young)
Patrick Star Bill Fagerbakke Bill Fagerbakke
Jack Gore
(young)
Squidward Tentacles Rodger Bumpass Rodger Bumpass
Jason Maybaum
(young)
Mr. Eugene Krabs Clancy Brown
Sheldon Plankton Mr. Lawrence
Karen Plankton Jill Talley
Sandy Cheeks Carolyn Lawrence Carolyn Lawrence
Presley Williams
(young)
Mrs. Puff Mary Jo Catlett
Pearl Krabs Lori Alan Deleted scene[15]
Gary the Snail Tom Kenny
King Neptune Jeffrey Tambor
Princess Mindy Scarlett Johansson
Dennis Alec Baldwin
David Hasselhoff Himself
Burger Beard Antonio Banderas
Bubbles Matt Berry
King Poseidon Matt Berry[16]
Sage Keanu Reeves
Otto Awkwafina
Chancellor Reggie Watts
Master of Ceremonies Tiffany Haddish
El Diablo Danny Trejo
  • A dark grey cell indicates that the character does not appear in the film.

Production[]

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie[]

Nickelodeon and Paramount Pictures had approached SpongeBob SquarePants creator Stephen Hillenburg for a film based on the show as early as 2001, but he refused for more than a year.[17] He was concerned, after watching The Iron Giant and Toy Story with his son, about the challenge of SpongeBob and Patrick doing something more cinematically consequential and inspiring without losing what he called the SpongeBob "cadence."[17] He said, on a break from season four post-production, "To do a 75-minute movie about SpongeBob wanting to make some jellyfish jelly would be a mistake, I think [...] This had to be SpongeBob in a great adventure. That's where the comedy's coming from, having these two naïve characters, SpongeBob and Patrick, a doofus and an idiot, on this incredibly dangerous heroic odyssey with all the odds against them."[17] The writers decided to write a mythical hero's quest for the 2004 film: the search for a stolen crown, which brings SpongeBob and Patrick to the surface.[18] Of the plot, Bill Fagerbakke (the voice of Patrick) said, "It's just nuts. I'm continually dazzled and delighted with what these guys came up with."[19]

Production on the first film began in 2002 after Hillenburg and the show's staff completed the third season.[20] A tongue-in-cheek announcement of the film's plot from early on stated that it would feature SpongeBob rescuing Patrick from a fisherman in Florida.[20] This was intended as a humorous reference to Finding Nemo and was later confirmed by Tom Kenny (the voice of SpongeBob) to be a "joke" plot to keep fans busy.[20] Hillenburg wrote the film with five other writer-animators from the show (Paul Tibbitt, Derek Drymon, Aaron Springer, Kent Osborne and Tim Hill) over a three-month period in a room of a former Glendale, California bank.[17] Osborne said, "It was hugely fun [...] although it did get kind of gamy in there."[17]

The first film was intended to be the series finale; Hillenburg wanted to end the franchise after the movie was completed so it "wouldn't jump the shark". However, Nickelodeon desired more episodes due to the franchise's growing popularity.[21] Hillenburg stated: "Well, there was concern when we did the movie [in 2004] that the show had peaked. There were concerns among executives at Nickelodeon."[22][23] As a result, Hillenburg resigned as the series' showrunner,[24] appointing writer, director, and storyboard artist Paul Tibbitt to succeed him.[25] Hillenburg still remained involved with the series, reviewing each episode and submitting suggestions.[24][26]

The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water[]

In 2010, The New York Times reported that Nickelodeon had approached the show's crew to make a second film.[27] The network hoped to give itself and the global franchise "a boost" by releasing another film.[28] The Los Angeles Times reported that Paramount had "another SpongeBob picture" in development in March 2011.[29] Philippe Dauman, then president and CEO of Paramount and Viacom, announced on February 28, 2012 that a sequel film was in development and slated for a late 2014 release.[30][31][32] Dauman added that the film "will serve to start off or be one of our films that starts off our new animation effort."[30] Nickelodeon expected the film to do much better in foreign box office than the 2004 feature, given its increasingly global reach.[28][33] Dauman said, "This will continue to propel SpongeBob internationally."[28] Production on the second movie was announced on June 10, 2014. Stephen Hillenburg returned to act as the film's executive producer,[citation needed] and contributed to the story of the film.[34]

The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run[]

In a February 2015 interview discussing The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water's success at the box office, Megan Colligan, president of worldwide distribution and marketing at Paramount Pictures, stated the possibility of a third film was "a good bet."[35] In another interview, Paramount vice-chairman Rob Moore remarked, "Hopefully, it won't take 10 years to make another film," in reference to the time passed between The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004) and its 2015 sequel.[36] Later in 2015, it was revealed that Paramount was developing sequels to its franchises, including another SpongeBob film.[37]

The film was initially scheduled for release theatrically in 2019,[38][39] before being delayed to 2020.[40] The film later had its theatrical run cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and instead released on video on demand and Paramount+.[41] By January 2016, Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger had been hired to write the film.[42] In April 2018, the film's official title was revealed as The SpongeBob Movie: It's a Wonderful Sponge, and SpongeBob co-developer Tim Hill was announced as director and writer for the film.[43][44] On November 12, 2019, it was revealed that the film's title was changed from It's a Wonderful Sponge to Sponge on the Run.[45]

Reception[]

Box office performance[]

Film Release date Box office Budget Ref.
Opening weekend
North America 		North America Other territories Worldwide
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie November 19, 2004 $32,018,216 $85,417,988 $54,775,005 $140,192,993 $30 million [46]
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water February 6, 2015 $55,365,012 $162,994,032 $162,192,000 $325,186,032 $74 million [47]
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run August 14, 2020 $865,824 $4,810,790 $4,810,790 $60 million [48]
Total $88,249,052 $253,222,810 $216,967,005 $470,189,815 $164 million

Critical and public reception[]

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic CinemaScore
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie 69% (128 reviews)[49] 66 (32 reviews)[50] B+[51]
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water 81% (103 reviews)[52] 62 (27 reviews)[53] B[54]
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run 68% (66 Reviews)[55] 65 (20 reviews)[56] TBA

Crew[]

Film Director(s) Producer(s) Writer(s) Composer Cinematographer Editor
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Stephen Hillenburg
Mark Osborne (live-action sequences) 		Stephen Hillenburg and Julia Pistor Screenplay: Derek Drymon, Tim Hill, Stephen Hillenburg, Kent Osborne, Aaron Springer & Paul Tibbitt
Story: Stephen Hillenburg 		Gregor Narholz Jerzy Zielinski Lynn Hobson
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water Paul Tibbitt
Mike Mitchell (live-action sequences) 		Paul Tibbitt and Mary Parent Screenplay: Jonathan Aibel & Glenn Berger
Story: Stephen Hillenburg & Paul Tibbitt 		John Debney Phil Méheux David Ian Salter
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run Tim Hill Ryan Harris Screenplay: Tim Hill
Story: Tim Hill, Jonathan Aibel & Glenn Berger 		Hans Zimmer
Steve Mazzaro 		Peter Lyons Collister Michael W. Andrews
Saving Bikini Bottom Liza Johnson N/A Kaz and Tom J. Stern N/A

References[]

  1. ^ Paramount Canada [@ParamountCanada] (July 30, 2020). "The happiest place on earth is a pineapple under the sea! Paramount Pictures Canada is excited to announce that THE #SPONGEBOBMOVIE: SPONGE ON THE RUN will open exclusively in Canadian theatres on August 14th" (Tweet). Retrieved July 30, 2020 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ Rebecca Rubin (June 22, 2020). "SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run Skipping Theaters to Launch On Demand and CBS All Access (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  3. ^ Brian Welk (January 28, 2021). "SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run to Debut on Paramount+ at March Launch". TheWrap. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  4. ^ Donnelly, Matt (April 25, 2018). "Paramount Animation Sets Three New Films, Including 'SpongeBob' Sequel". The Wrap. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  5. ^ Giardina, Carolyn (April 25, 2018). "Paramount Grows Its Animation Slate With 'Monster on the Hill,' 'Luck'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  6. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (July 24, 2018). "Paramount's 'The SpongeBob Movie' To Soak Up Mid-July 2020". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  7. ^ Anderton, Ethan (April 26, 2018). "Paramount Animation Announces SpongeBob Sequel 'It's a Wonderful Sponge', Two More Animated Movies". /Film. Peter Sciretta. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  8. ^ Amid Amidi (October 23, 2018). "The SpongeBob Movie: It's a Wonderful Sponge Will Be An Origin Story". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  9. ^ Brandon Davis (January 23, 2019). "SpongeBob SquarePants 3 Begins Production". ComicBook.com. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  10. ^ Jeff Sneider (May 21, 2021). "Exclusive: Beloved 'SpongeBob Squarepants' Character Sandy Cheeks Set for Spinoff Movie". Collider. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
  11. ^ https://www.productionweekly.com/production-weekly-issue-1259-thursday-august-12-2021-148-listings-33-pages/
  12. ^ https://ladailypost.com/los-alamos-film-shoot-cut-from-spongebob-movie/
  13. ^ https://losalamosreporter.com/2021/08/16/plans-to-film-scene-from-new-spongebob-movie-in-los-alamos-scrapped/
  14. ^ "Streaming On: Kids and Family with Brian Robbins". YouTube. Google Inc. 24 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
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  19. ^ The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie: The Absorbing Tale Behind The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. DVD. Paramount Home Entertainment, 2005.
  20. ^ Jump up to: a b c Koltnow, Barry (November 14, 2004). "SpongeBob creator is soaking up success". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved June 16, 2013.
  21. ^ Heintjes, Tom (September 21, 2012). "The Oral History of SpongeBob SquarePants". Hogan's Alley. Archived from the original on August 31, 2015. Retrieved August 23, 2013.
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  28. ^ Jump up to: a b c Chozik, Amy (March 4, 2012). "Return to Big Screen for SpongeBob". The New York Times. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
  29. ^ Fritz, Ben; Verrier, Richard (March 4, 2011). "Success for Paramount's Rango could lead to end of deal with DreamWorks". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 14, 2012. Retrieved March 26, 2014.
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