Hang out with 10-year-old SpongeBob SquarePants and his pals as they spend a fun-filled summer at Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years. Kamp Koral is a sleepaway summer camp for the children of Bikini Bottom. We sat down with the stars of this new CG-animated prequel to find out what it’s like to work in Bikini Bottom.
What’s it like to work on Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years?
Tom Kenny (SpongeBob): I’ll record a session or two per day at my home studio. I just come up here and scream and yell. It’s kind of like a real job, but it’s fun. The hours are the same as a regular job, but for me it’s always been a way to avoid a real job.
Rodger Bumpass (Squidward): Fortunately we don’t have to go to work, we get to go work.
How are you similar to your character?
Tom Kenny (SpongeBob): SpongeBob is very open hearted. He is high energy, loves his work, is super eager, and positive in his outlook. That does describe me too. I think SpongeBob has made me a more hopeful person. That’s really a gift. These characters are really special to us and it’s definitely something we treat with care.
Rodger Bumpass (Squidward): Squidward has made me a more sarcastic person. He has enabled me to be kind of a jerk in a playful way and get away with it.
Tom Kenny (SpongeBob): That’s kind of a superpower. You can be sarcastic and people don’t get mad. They just go ‘hey, that’s Squidward!’.
Carolyn Lawrence (Sandy): I can identify with Sandy having big ideas and not always knowing how to bring them to fruition. It’s fun watching a younger Sandy finding her way as a scientist and getting those early ideas about what she wants to do and how she wants to do it. It’s cool to be able to go back and watch them all grow.
What do you think fans will love about Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years?
Rodger Bumpass (Squidward): I think they will love it because you’re seeing younger versions of the characters that are closer to the kids’ age. The heart and the friendships and the craziness are still there. So I think kids and adults will love it.
Are you able to make up your own lines or do you have to stick to the script?
Carolyn Lawrence (Sandy): We do passes as written in the script, and then we get to do one wild pass where we get to say anything creative we’ve thought of that might be funny.
Clancy Brown (Mr. Krabs): We have so much fun doing this. Sometimes we might even cheat and do two crazy passes.
What advice would you give to your 10-year-old selves?
Bill Fagerbakke (Patrick): I’d say ‘Hey, watch Patrick and how much fun he has with his friends. That’s a great way to live’.
Carolyn Lawrence (Sandy): Don’t be afraid to be you. It’s so hard when you’re young and you feel all these pressures from other kids about what you should wear, what you should sound like, or what you should be doing. Just be who you are. You’re awesome!
What’s your favourite thing about working on SpongeBob?
Carolyn Lawrence (Sandy): The people on our team. We don’t have a stinker in the bunch!
Bill Fagerbakke (Patrick): It’s just so remarkable to be part of something that has a continuous life to it. There have been hundreds of episodes, and I never go ‘Oh, not this again’. I love it.
Catch Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years on Paramount+ now!
