Background and development
Mr Lawrence, SpongeBob SquarePants veteran and the voice of Plankton, conceived the film four or five years before its release as a half-hour special. Around that same time, Nickelodeon was asking the SpongeBob crew to come up with ideas for character-driven spin-off films. Realizing that his idea was perfect for a feature film-format, Lawrence's story was put into development. [3] Plankton: The Movie was developed concurrently with the fourth theatrical SpongeBob film, The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants . Lawrence was heavily involved in most aspects of the film's production. [3] Vincent Waller, executive producer, described the film as "Doug's (Lawrence) movie" and as both a cast member and writer, "the perfect opportunity to explore both sides of what he has to offer for the show." [3]
Plankton: The Movie showcases a deep dive into Plankton and Karen's relationship. Director Dave Needham was excited to work on the project because he felt it was darker and weirder than standard SpongeBob fare. [3] He commented that it "sits just to the edge of what you'd expect from a SpongeBob movie." He added, "Of course, Karen becomes the real villain of this story, and it's hilarious to see Plankton go through all the stages of grief and revenge and acceptance to kind of become the hero." [3]
In March 2020, it was reported that ViacomCBS would be producing two spin-off films based on SpongeBob for Netflix. [4] In February 2022, during an investor call, Nickelodeon CEO Brian Robbins said that three SpongeBob character-driven spin-off films were in the works and that they would release exclusively on streamer Paramount+, with the first one premiering in 2023. [5] However, in April 2023, it was reported that the first one, Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie , would instead debut on Netflix in 2024. [6] In June 2024, it was announced that a second SpongeBob spin-off film for Netflix, titled Plankton: The Movie, was in production and would feature Plankton as its lead character. [7] The series' regular voice cast of Mr. Lawrence, Jill Talley, Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Carolyn Lawrence, Clancy Brown, and Rodger Bumpass were confirmed to reprise their roles. [7] David Needham was announced as the film's director, with Mr. Lawrence co-writing the film, alongside Kaz and Chris Viscardi. [7]
Animation and music
Plankton: The Movie's animation was provided by four vendors: ReDefine Animation, Mikros Animation, Yukfoo Animation, and mcbess. [3] The film is notable for its mixture of CG animation, four different styles of 2D animation, and live-action. The different animated sequences primarily take the form of flashbacks showcasing different points of Plankton's life. [3] Executive producer Marc Ceccarelli stated, "It might be a cliché, but we think there’s never a dull moment! If you don’t like something, just give it seconds, and the style will change, and you’ll see something completely different. We even have exciting battle scenes with giant robots." [3]
Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper was announced as the composer, with Karyn Rachtman and Otis Ratchman as music supervisors. [7] Additionally, the film features original songs written by Bret McKenzie, Linda Perry, Mark Mothersbaugh, and Bob Mothersbaugh. [7] Waller said that as production progressed, the film "sneakily" became a musical project, which he felt to be unusual for them. He noted that series creator, Stephen Hillenburg, tried to incorporate a selection of electic bands to provide music for the series, and felt the musical diversity of Plankton: The Movie was their way of honoring that. [3] Ceccarelli described working with McKenzie, Perry, and Mark and Bob Mothersbaugh as a dream come true for the crew. [3]
