SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout

SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout is a 2019 TV special blending live-action and animation, made for the SpongeBob SquarePants series. It was created for the show's twelfth season and first aired on Nickelodeon in the U.S. on July 12, 2019, to mark the series' 20th anniversary. Kaz and Mr. Lawrence wrote it, Jonas Morganstein directed it, and it is dedicated to the memory of series creator Stephen Hillenburg, who passed away in 2018.

The series follows SpongeBob SquarePants (voiced by Tom Kenny) in the underwater town of Bikini Bottom. In this special, the town's residents plan a surprise birthday party for SpongeBob, while he and his friend Patrick Star (voiced by Bill Fagerbakke) take a trip to the surface world and encounter real-life versions of themselves. The live-action scenes include guest stars such as Kel Mitchell, Jack Griffo, Daniella Perkins, and David Hasselhoff, who previously appeared as himself in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie.

The plot begins with Patchy the Pirate in Encino, California, trying to reach Bikini Bottom to give SpongeBob a birthday present. Meanwhile, Sandy Cheeks gathers Patrick, Old Man Walker, Mr. Krabs, Mrs. Puff, Bubble Bass, and Plankton to get SpongeBob's house keys and decorate his home. Patrick and SpongeBob board a tour bus to the surface, helped by the French Narrator. At SpongeBob's house, an argument over the party theme leads Sandy to split the decorations among the group, now including Squidward. The party gets chaotic, and the house begins to fall apart. On the surface, the tour bus encounters odd sights: a beach bean event, a dog playing fetch, an office full of gorilla-masked employees, a restaurant called the Trusty Slab (mimicking the Krusty Krab) with human counterparts played by the voice actors, and a fish store where the bus is mistakenly placed. Patrick pushes the bus to safety, and the group returns to the ocean. Back in Bikini Bottom, SpongeBob finds his wrecked house and thanks everyone for the celebration. A box falls from the sky, revealing Patchy's head, which congratulates him. SpongeBob's friends then sing a birthday song similar to the opening theme, with various celebrities offering congratulations. As the song ends, Patrick asks SpongeBob his age, but static cuts him off.