Happy Pride month to a certain yellow sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea! On Saturday (June 13th), Nickelodeon seemed to confirm many folks' longtime suspicions that the character of Spongebob Squarepants from the series of the same name is, in fact, gay. Although they didn't explicitly state it, the network shared a post on Twitter celebrating Pride month, which included some photos of a few of their characters that are apart of the LGBTQ+ community. One of the photos depicted a rainbow-fied Spongebob smiling wide.
"Celebrating #Pride with the LGBTQ+ community and their allies this month and every month," the tweet read. The post also includes images of Schwoz Schwartz from Henry Danger and Korra from the Avatar spin-off show Legend of Korra. Fans have known for ages that Korra is bisexual, as it was explicitly written into the show itself. The character of Schwoz is played by actor Michael D. Cohen, who recently revealed himself to be a transgendered man.
Check out some of the excited reactions from Twitter users about Spongebob's unofficial coming out.
Nickelodeon Blacks Out For 8 Minutes & 46 Seconds In George Floyd Protest
Children’s television network Nickelodeon went off-air for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, the same amount of time it took Derek Chauvin to kill George Floyd.
It took Derek Chauvin 8 minutes and 46 seconds to end the life of George Floyd by forcefully pinning his knee against the man’s neck and back. In order to tribute the life of Floyd and all the countless others that have lost their lives to police violence and racism, children’s television network Nickelodeon went dark for the same amount of time last night.
Several networks, including BET, Comedy Central, VH1, and more, all stopped their regular programming for 8 minutes and 46 seconds on Monday evening. Nickelodeon issued a statement as to why they were participating.
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“Nickelodeon is going off the air for 8 minutes and 46 seconds in support of justice, equality, and human rights,” wrote the children’s television channel on social media. They went off-air and showed their “Declaration of Kids’ Rights” on the screen.
“You have the right to be seen, heard, and respected as a citizen of the world,” read the text. “You have the right to a world that is peaceful. You have the right to be treated with equality, regardless of the color of your skin. You have the right to be protected from harm, injustice, and hatred. You have the right to an education that prepares you to run the world. You have the right to your opinions and feelings, even if others don’t agree with them.”
The move has been celebrated and criticized by parents, with some suggesting that it was inappropriate for a children’s station to do. Others are applauding Nickelodeon for taking such a loud stance against racial inequality during this time of need.
SpongeBob Squarepants Is Officially Getting Prequel Series
“Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years” will premiere on Nickelodeon in July.
It’s amazing how well SpongeBob Squarepants holds up as we age into our adult years. There’s something about those goofy characters that never cease to bring immense joy to all demographics. The abundance of SpongeBob memes speaks volumes of the series’ cultural impact. That being said, it is with great pleasure that I announce (relay an announcement from Nickelodeon) that a prequel for the beloved animated program will be arriving this summer.
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On Wednesday (Feb. 19), Nickelodeon unveiled the lineup of programming coming to the network in 2020-2021. As per a press release from The Hollywood Reporter, the new series will be titled Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years. “Ordered to series in summer 2019, the CG-animated prequel to Nick’s flagship series SpongeBob SquarePants will follow 10-year-old SpongeBob to summer camp. The series will feature the original show’s core voice cast in Tom Kenny (SpongeBob), Bill Fagerbakke (Patrick), Rodger Bumpass (Squidward), Clancy Brown (Mr. Krabs), Carolyn Lawrence (Sandy) and Mr. Lawrence (Plankton), along with series veterans Mary Jo Catlett (Mrs. Puff), Jill Talley (Karen) and Lori Alan (Pearl). Carlos Alazraqui and Kate Higgins will voice new characters.”
Before the prequel series premieres in July, you will get a peak into Kamp Koral through the 3D live-action SpongeBob movie that comes out in May. It has been detailed that The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run partially takes place at this summer camp too when diving into a flashback.