'SpongeBob SquarePants 3' Begins Production

SpongeBob Squarepants is gearing up for another big screen outing as SpongeBob Squarepants 3: It's A Wonderful Sponge has begun production.

The production began principal photography at Paramount Animation with little details about the film surfacing as of yet. The only known bits are that SpongeBob Squarepants 3: It's A Wonderful Sponge is expected to be a prequel of sorts to the SpongeBob Squarepants series as a whole which will unveil the origin story of Bikini Bottom's favorite fry cook.

The origin story is expected to take place at Camp Coral and detail the first encounters of SpongeBob with his best friends Patrick Star and Sandy Cheeks. "The animated movie will use full CGI animation for the underwater sequences, which marks the first time for the franchise to do so," MovieWeb reports. "Live-action sequences will be featured as well, similar to the first SpongeBob movie."

Tim Hill will direct the film, a long time writer of the SpongeBob Squarepants TV series. Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Rodger Bumpass, Clancy Brown, Mr. Lawrence, Jill Talley, Carolyn Lawrence, Mary Jo Catlett, and Lori Alan are expected to lend their voices to the film with a score being brought to life by Hans Zimmer.

SpongeBob Squarepants 3: It's A Wonderful Sponge will be the first SpongeBob Squarepants movie since creator Stephen Hillenburg's passing in November of 2018. Following Hillenburg's passing, fans began clamoring for the Super Bowl to pay tribute to an iconic episode of the animated series which saw SpongeBob lead a marching band at the half-time show. As Maroon 5 gears up to host half-time's big event in February, they spawned a bit of a rumor that there would be some form of honoring Hillenburg's SpongeBob in their show when a promo for the event featured the animated character.

The TV series has been airing new episodes with its twelfth season, remaining wildly popular on Nickelodeon.

The release date for SpongeBob Squarepants 3: It's A Wonderful Sponge is expected as July 17, 2020.