REVIEW: 'The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants' Might Be The Best SpongeBob Film Since 2004
- Christopher Mills
- Dec 15, 2025
- 4 min read
This review contains spoilers for 'The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants.'
For the past year, we've been subjected to SpongeBob SquarePants spin-off movies that have been dropped on Netflix, films that quite easily were giving a bad name to the SpongeBob SquarePants IP. It has been five years since we've gotten a theatrical release, and although these spin-off films were bad, that doesn't mean the two previous theatrical movies were any better. As of 2025, The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie is the only film that is part of the franchise that got everything right and is considered by some a great animated movie.
The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants is the fourth theatrical movie, and it follows SpongeBob SquarePants (Tom Kenny) as he does what it takes to become a "big guy," and to achieve that and prove his bravery, he ventures into the deep seas along with the Flying Dutchman (Mark Hamill).
The movie sticks with the 3D-CG animation that the last few movies have followed, and there's no real reason as to why they've decided to stick with this animation style for their movies except for the simple fact that it's cost-effective. The animation in this film is better than what we've gotten from the Netflix movies. When compared to its previous theatrical entries, it doesn't try to go for the stylistic look that Sponge on the Run had but instead feels more in line with the show's art and is the closest that it has been since the transition to 3D-CG animation.
Each movie has had a new director, and no one has been able to do it like Stephen Hillenburg in 2004. Every director since had been a screenwriter on The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie and worked on the show, so it was always confusing why they weren't able to at least replicate a good story if the animation wasn't going to be up to par. Derek Drymon is attached as the director, another SpongeBob veteran, and for the first time since the original movie, we get a story and characters that feel like they come from those early episodes of SpongeBob SquarePants.
SpongeBob quickly realises that despite being a little bit taller, he's not ready to be a "big guy," as rollercoasters still scare him. A conversation with Mr. Krabs (Clancy Brown) inspires SpongeBob to find ways to prove his bravery so he can finally become a "big guy," which leads him to the Flying Dutchman. In Mr. Krabs' story, the Flying Dutchman sounded like the ghost of legends, the perfect person to take SpongeBob on a treacherous journey through the deep seas that would help him prove himself. Unfortunately for SpongeBob, the Flying Dutchman wants to use him so that he can finally lift his curse and become human again.
It's a story that's honestly rather basic, but it manages to send a beautiful message to its younger audience about bravery and attacking your fears head-on. SpongeBob and Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke) get up to some silly antics as always with the Flying Dutchman as Mr. Krabs and Squidward (Rodger Bumpass) try to rescue them before it's too late and we're left with a lot of unnecessary butt jokes (too many for my own liking). Thankfully, not every joke in this movie tends to be a butt joke, and I did catch myself laughing quite a few times, which was a total surprise, as SpongeBob hasn't been able to make me laugh since I was watching it as a kid.
The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants has become quite popular due to Ice Spice's song "Big Guy," which has even gotten its own viral dance. The lyrics to the song might not make any actual sense when you look too deep into it, but its significance to the film is great, and the more you listen to it, you start to notice that for a family film, it's not all too bad and that we have had worse for original songs. It's not only memorable but also catchy, serves a purpose to the story aside from providing Ice Spice with a cameo in the movie and will have the kids dancing as the credits roll.
The overall voice acting is average from the cast of SpongeBob SquarePants and is exactly as you'd expect from them, but the standout is Mark Hamill. He delivers a fantastic performance as the Flying Dutchman and impresses in other scenes during the third act and does a great job of being able to switch from the friendly, deceiving Flying Dutchman to the villainous, greedy Flying Dutchman.
The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants is without a doubt the best SpongeBob SquarePants film since 2004 and is a lot of fun for the family. It does well in teaching a message despite its simplistic story that feels like we've probably seen in an episode of SpongeBob SquarePants. The animation was an improvement, but a return to 2D will always be welcomed, even if that means it takes longer for a film to release, but despite that, this was their best attempt at a SpongeBob SquarePants movie in a long while.
About The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants
Premiere Date: December 20, 2025
Writer: Pam Brady, Matt Liberman
Director: Derek Drymon
Production: Paramount Animation, Nickelodeon Movies
Distribution: Paramount Pictures
Cast: Tom Kenny, Clancy Brown, Rodger Bumpass, Bill Fagerbakke, Carolyn Lawrence, Ice Spice, Mark Hamill, Regina Hall
Synopsis: Desperate to become a "big guy," SpongeBob, setting out to prove his bravery to Mr. Krabs, travels to the deepest depths of the ocean to follow the Flying Dutchman.
Comments