Summary
- Spongebob Squarepants Debuted in 1999 and has evolved into a successful franchise, including multiple movies and a 15th season.
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The cast reflects the show’s success, with Tom Kenny noting the subtle signs of its growing popularity over time.
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The voice actors discuss new projects viz The Patrick Star Show, The Sandy Cheeks movie, and potential sports commentating gigs for SpongeBob and friends.
It is the 25th anniversary of Spongebob Squarepants And Screen Rant is proud to celebrate alongside the cast and crew at San Diego Comic-Con. The show first debuted in 1999 on Nickelodeon with the pilot episode titled “Help Wanted.” True to his name, the cartoon sponge applies for a job at the Krusty Krab restaurant, home of the iconic Krabby Patty. This sets in motion a series of events that would entertain viewers of all ages for years to come.
The show eventually evolved into a franchise, and its first official film,the spongebob squarepants movie, Earned a theatrical release in November 2004. Sponge Bob Has been developed into several movies since, and the series has been renewed by Nickelodeon for a fifteenth season in 2023. After all 26 installments air, it will bring the cartoon to an impressive 345 episode total. the latest film, The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarepantsWill hit theaters on December 19, 2025.
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Screen Rant sits down with Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbake, Carolyn Lawrence, Roger Bumpass, Clancy Brown, Mr. Lawrence, Marc Ceccarelli and Vincent Waller at San Diego Comic-Con to chat about SpongeBob SquarePants impressive legacy, The Patrick Star Showand their hopes for the characters’ futures.
The moment Tom Kenny & Rodger Bumpass realized SpongeBob SquarePants was a phenomenon
“What I remember was the air fresheners with SpongeBob on them.”
Screen Rant: You look around San Diego Comic-Con, and you can see all the massive ones Spongebob Squarepants Promotions and advertisements. What was the first moment you can remember where it became clear that this was really blowing up into something bigger than most shows?
Tom Kenny: It was a little bit incremental. When you’re on a show, when you start seeing stuff, that’s when you know that maybe the show has some potential to have some legs. So I remember when I first started watching Sponge Bob Plushies at Toys R Us or a backpack here or there. You see a kid with a SpongeBob t-shirt on like, oh it’s maybe this is happening. But I mean, we weren’t like “world domination has begun!” It was just like, “Hey, great, maybe we’ll get another few months.
Rodger Bumpass: It was car air fresheners. What I remember was the air fresheners with SpongeBob on them.
Tom Kenny: When you see macaroni and cheese, fruit roll-ups and SpongeBob boxers in the men’s section, it’s like, “That sounds good.”
SpongeBob actors discuss the influences behind The Patrick Star Show
“It’s an incredible thing to be involved with.”
Screen Rant: Bill, you’ve also gotten to take Patrick to an even wackier place in recent years with The Patrick Star Show.
Bill Fagerbakke: It’s a little out there [Laughter]. It’s really fun. It’s an incredible thing to be involved with.
Mr Lawrence: Monty Python was a big influence on how we wanted to make The Patrick star Show. It’s a sketch show.
Tom Kenny: Yeah, it’s like Rocky & Bullwinkle. It’s a sketch show. You had Mr. Know-It-All and then you had The Bullwinkle Adventure and then Peabody and Sherman. There are the segments. The Patrick Star Show is definitely intertwined with threads of segments, more than one through-line story for the episode.
Carolyn Lawrence and Tom Kenny are still surprised by these Sandy Cheeks Movie
Screen Rant: Carolyn, we get those too Sandy Cheeks Movie!
Carolyn Lawrence: I can’t believe it. It’s so funny, when anyone says that, I’m like “What?! Really!?”
Screen Rant: What got you most excited about taking Sandy on this kind of adventure?
Carolyn Lawrence: It was amazing because I learned, 25 years in, that you’re still learning things about your characters. Still things come up that are new to you. I read the script, and I was like, “Oh, she’s doing that?! Oh, that’s really cool!” That’s part of the excitement for me as a performer, and hopefully for the people watching as well.
Tom Kenny: The movie is photorealistic [animation]. It mostly happens in the real world with live-action.
Carolyn Lawrence: I can watch it and be like, “Wow“I got lost in it. I stopped realizing – my brain accepted the live-action and the animation as the same thing. They marry really well.
Tom Kenny: Sandy takes SpongeBob to Texas with her. That car chase is great. It’s like Sandy and the bandit. It’s amazing.
Clancy Brown & Mr. Lawrence on Mr. Krabs & Plankton’s Comedy Rivalry
Screen Rant: Clancy, what’s it like playing a comical character that’s almost funny to root for versus how to root for?
Clancy Brown: They’re just saying [the scripts] To is and we do it [Laughter]…you just get in touch with your inner KRAWBS.
Screen Rant: Lawrence, you famously fought for Plankton in the early days of the show and his inclusion in the show. What is it about this character that convinces you to do more plankton?
Mr. Lawrence: There’s something great about just a guy across the street basically causing a cola war between the two restaurants. So there’s something fun about a guy who’s megalomaniac but living in his basement. He is such a great antagonist because…
Clancy Brown: He’s so small. [Laughter]
Screen Rant: I also wanted to bring up that SpongeBob and Patrick got to commentate on the NFL this past year! What other sports would you want to let this cast be the announcers for?
Tom Kenny: Cricket. I would like to call him cricket game just for you. No, I think I would say curling. I would like curling because it involves sweeping, spongebob likes to clean, so the brooms are great.
Mr. Lawrence: Cornhole! Mostly because I just wanted to say cornhole. [Laughter]
Carolyn Lawrence: Women’s basketball. That would be cool.
Rodger Bumpass: I would like to do competitive quiche. [Squidward] Could be the Kish boss. [Laughter]
More about SpongeBob SquarePants
A square yellow sponge named SpongeBob Squarepants lives in a pineapple with his pet snail, Gary, in the city of Bikini Bottom on the floor of the Pacific Ocean. He works as a fry cook at the Krusty Krab. In his time off, SpongeBob has a chance to attract trouble with his starfish best friend, Patrick. Arrogant octopus Squidward Tentacles, SpongeBob’s neighbor, dislikes SpongeBob because of his childlike behavior.
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Source: Screen Rant Plus
Spongebob Squarepants is an animated comedy created by Stephen Hillenburg and starring the voices of Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke and Rodger Bumpass. The series revolves around a sea sponge who goes on many misadventures with his friends Patrick, Squidward and Sandy Chicks in the lands of Bikini Bottom and the surrounding sea.