Franchise / SpongeBob SquarePants

Let the nautical nonsense begin!

Top logo is the franchise's first logo from 1999 to 2008; bottom logo is the current one since 2008.

"I'm ready!"
— SpongeBob

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SpongeBob SquarePants is an animated TV show created by marine biologist Stephen Hillenburg. It premiered in 1999 as the tenth Nicktoon to air on Nickelodeon. The show is about an anthropomorphic and relentlessly optimistic sea sponge named SpongeBob. He works at the Krusty Krab restaurant with his greedy boss Eugene Krabs and his grumpy coworker Squidward. SpongeBob has a passion for fry cooking, a habit of causing trouble with his best pal Patrick Star, and a knack for inadvertently outplaying the harmless villains Plankton and Karen. Despite his talents and to the dismay of his teacher Mrs. Puff, he is hopelessly unable to drive a boat without crashing or creating citywide destruction. SpongeBob's other friends include Sandy the sea-dwelling squirrel, Pearl the enormous teenage whale, and his intelligent pet sea snail Gary.

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The show proved to be a huge success for both children and adults, likely due to the show having lots of Parental Bonuses and clever writing. Upon Nickelodeon realizing that they'd struck gold ^note Heck, it makes up two thirds of Viacom's profits, the show has since aired twelve whole seasons and three movies across over twenty years. After the third season and The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, Stephen Hillenburg stepped down from his position as showrunner. In the middle of Season 9, he returned to contribute to The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water and returned to work on the show until November 2018, when he passed away from ALS. It is the longest running Nicktoon and the fifth longest running American-animated show in history.^note After The Simpsons, Arthur, South Park and Family Guy, the latter of which also started in 1999.

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The show has had some spinoff media, being as big as it is. There have been multiple video game adaptations of the show, with many at the quality you would expect, and a few that are surprisingly good. Additionally, a Broadway musical based on the show called The SpongeBob Musical premiered on June 7 in Chicago, and officially hit Broadway in November of 2017. The show features songs written by a wide variety of artists, including Jonathan Coulton, Lady Antebellum, They Might Be Giants, Panic! at the Disco, P!nk, and even the late David Bowie.

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SpongeBob SquarePants media:

Television series

• SpongeBob SquarePants (1999-present)
  • Christmas Who? (2000)
  • It's a SpongeBob Christmas! (2012)
  • The Legend of Boo-Kini Bottom (2017)
• Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years (2021)
• The Patrick Star Show (2021)

Feature films

• The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004)
• The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water (2015)
• The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (2020)^note Released first in Canada due to the COVID-19 Pandemic; the American release came in 2021.

• Untitled fourth theatrical film (2025)
• Saving Bikini Bottom: A Sandy Cheeks Movie (2023) ^note  Will be released on Paramount+.
• Plankton (2024) ^note  Will be released on Paramount+.
• Untitled Patrick-centered film (2025) ^note  Will be released on Paramount+.

Comic books

• The Intertidal Zone (1984), a comic that served as an early prototype to the animated series.
• SpongeBob Comics (2011-2018)
• SpongeBob Freestyle Funnies (2012-2018)
• SpongeBob SquarePants Mysteries (2022-)

Video games

• SpongeBob SquarePants: Legend of the Lost Spatula (2001)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Operation Krabby Patty (2001)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: SuperSponge (2001)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Employee of the Month (2002)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Revenge of the Flying Dutchman (2002)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom (2003)
  • SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated (2020)
• The SpongeBob Movie Game (2004)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Lights, Camera, Pants! (2005)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: The Yellow Avenger (2005)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab (2006)
• SpongeBob’s Atlantis Squarepantis (2007)
• Drawn to Life: SpongeBob SquarePants Edition (2008)
• SpongeBob Diner Dash (2009)
• SpongeBob's Truth or Square (2009)
• SpongeBob's Boating Bash (2010)
• SpongeBob SquigglePants (2011)
• SpongeBob Moves In (2013; closed 2021)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Plankton's Robotic Revenge (2013)
• SpongeBob HeroPants (2015)
• SpongeBob: Krusty Cook-Off (2020)
• SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit (2020)
• SpongeBob's Idle Adventures (2021)
• SpongeBob SolitairePants (2022)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake (2023)

Miscellaneous works

• Astrology with Squidward shorts (2000)
• The SpongeBob Musical (2016)
• Music albums
• SpongeBob DocuPants (2021)

Crossovers with other Nicktoons^note All of them (except Nicktoon Blast) are video games.

• Nicktoons Racing (2000)
  • Nicktoons Winners Cup Racing (2006)
  • Nicktoons Nitro (2009)
• Nickelodeon Party Blast (2002)
• Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast theme park ride (2003-2011)
• Nicktoons Basketball (2004)
• Nicktoons: Freeze Frame Frenzy (2004)
• Nicktoons Unite! (2005)
  • Nicktoons: Battle for Volcano Island (2006)
  • Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots (2007)
  • SpongeBob SquarePants featuring Nicktoons: Globs of Doom (2008)
• Nickelodeon Super Brawl series (2008-2020)
• Nicktoons MLB (2011)
• Nickelodeon Kart Racers (2018)
  • Nickelodeon Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix (2020)
  • Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway (2022)
• Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl (2021)
• Nickelodeon Extreme Tennis (2022)

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