Behind Closed Doors (book)
Unreleased book of pornographic SpongeBob drawings leaked in 2023.
Behind Closed Doors is an unreleased book of pornographic drawings of SpongeBob SquarePants characters created by storyboard artists for Nickelodeon in the early 2000s. Its existence was first publicly mentioned by SpongeBob storyboarder Kent Osborne in a 2012 interview. Excerpts from the book were leaked online in July 2023 after an anonymous former Nickelodeon employee contacted a YouTuber with information and a limited selection of drawings.
Quick Facts
- Editor
- Sam Henderson
- Illustrator
- Sam Henderson
- Jay Lender
- Kent Osborne
- other unidentified illustrators
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Subject
- SpongeBob SquarePants
- Genre
- Pornography
- Published
- July 18, 2023 (leak of excerpt)
- Format
- Art book
Facts from the source article.
Discovery
In the years after Osborne revealed the book's existence in 2012, Behind Closed Doors gained a legendary status in the SpongeBob community due to its elusiveness. In July 2023, an anonymous ex-employee of Nickelodeon contacted YouTuber LSuperSonicQ, who makes videos about lost media. The ex-employee said his copy was one of the originals, held together in a nondescript spiral notebook. He provided the front cover and six images of SpongeBob characters in sexual scenarios, and stated the book also contains 1940s war imagery using company logos and drawings of characters being physically harmed. LSuperSonicQ used the material to create a video discussing the images and their background.
Reception
After the leak in July 2023, the drawings sparked debate about their purpose. Writing for Kotaku, Isaiah Colbert called the drawings unhinged and said Nickelodeon storyboard artists should never make such illustrations again. Screen Rant, Giant Freakin Robot, Hocmarketing, and Softonic argued the book could be childhood-ruining, echoing reports of distress among SpongeBob fans. LSuperSonicQ expressed a critical view, arguing the book was possibly malicious and concluded it exists as a remnant of a studio plagued with controversy. Meeks shared that opinion, asserting obvious ethical issues with the contents.
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