Plankton: The Movie
A SpongeBob spin-off following Plankton and Karen's conflict.
Plankton: The Movie is a 2025 American animated musical comedy film. Dave Needham directed it, and the screenplay was written by Kaz, Chris Viscardi, and Mr. Lawrence. It is based on the TV series *SpongeBob SquarePants*, created by Stephen Hillenburg, and features the show’s regular voice cast. The story follows Plankton, whose usual schemes for world domination get derailed when his computer wife, Karen, decides to take control instead. This film is the second *SpongeBob* character spin-off made for Netflix, following *Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie* from 2024.
Quick Facts
- Director
- Dave Needham
- Screenplay
- Mr. Lawrence / Kaz / Chris Viscardi
- Story
- Mr. Lawrence
- Based On
- SpongeBob SquarePants · Stephen Hillenburg
- Starring
- Mr. Lawrence / Jill Talley / Tom Kenny / Bill Fagerbakke / Clancy Brown / Rodger Bumpass / Carolyn Lawrence / Lori Alan / Mary Jo Catlett
- Editing
- Lisa Linder Silver
- Music
- Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper
- Studio
- Nickelodeon Movies
- Distributor
- Netflix
- Released
- 7 March 2025
- Runtime
- 84 minutes
- Country
- United States
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The film was originally conceived by Mr. Lawrence as a half-hour special titled 'Karen Takes Over,' but was eventually put into development as a feature. In March 2020, ViacomCBS announced that it would be producing SpongeBob spin-off films for streaming television. In June 2024, a spin-off film featuring Plankton as its lead was announced with its creative team attached. The film's animation was provided by four vendors: ReDefine Animation, Mikros Animation, Yukfoo Animation, and McBess Studios, utilizing a mixture of CGI animation, four different styles of 2D animation, and live-action. The different animated sequences primarily take the form of flashbacks showcasing different points in Plankton's life, with older animation styles used for earlier time periods.
Reader's Guide
Plankton: The Movie represents a significant expansion of the SpongeBob SquarePants franchise into character-driven streaming films, following the model established by Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie. The film explores the relationship between Plankton and his computer wife Karen, with Karen taking on a villainous role after Plankton dismisses her ideas. The production involved multiple animation styles and original songs from notable songwriters. Prior to its official release, the entire film was leaked online in August 2024. Upon release, it debuted with 14.3 million views over its premiere weekend, becoming the number one overall title on Netflix's English-language film chart that week, and received generally positive reviews from critics.
Did You Know?
- The entire film was leaked online as a video upload in August 2024, prior to its official release.
- The soundtrack album was released by Lakeshore Records on March 7, 2025, the same day as the film.
More in Characters & Voices
Elsewhere in SpongeBob SquarePants
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