Movies like SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants (2009)
The best movies like SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants (2009) are Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024), Dolphin Tale 2 (2014) and The Pout-Pout Fish (2026). If SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Three More (2024)7.5/10 from 246 votes
- NewestThe Pout-Pout Fish (2026)Released 2026
Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024)
When Bikini Bottom is scooped from the ocean, scientific squirrel Sandy Cheeks and her pal SpongeBob SquarePants saddle up for Texas to save their town.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDolphin Tale 2 (2014)
The team of people who saved Winter's life reassemble in the wake of her surrogate mother's passing in order to find her a companion so she can remain at the Clearwater Marine Hospital.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Pout-Pout Fish (2026)
Living on a rundown shipwreck, Mr. Fish one day discovers a hyperactive young sea dragon Pip – who had mistaken his home for a junkyard – pilfering his belongings. The heated argument that ensues leaves both their houses in ruin. But there is hope! Embarking on a seemingly impossible quest in search of the mythical 'Shimmer' to grant them a wish, there’s only one problem: someone else is on the hunt...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonster High: Great Scarrier Reef (2016)
Join your favourite ghoulfriends in an all-new aquatic adventure! When the ghouls get pulled into the school pool, they're transported to the gore-geous underwater world of the Great Scarrier Reef. Lagoon realizes she's come home and, in a fintastic mission of the heart, decides to come to terms with her own freaky flaws. Of course she'll need help from the most creeperific firends ever as she confronts a frenemy from her past, competes in a scaretastic dance extravaganze, and fights a terrible beast from the deep!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water (2015)
Evil pirate Burger Beard is in search of the final page of a magical book that makes any evil plan he writes in it come true, but the final page happens to be the Krabby Patty secret formula. When Burger Beard endangers Bikini Bottom, SpongeBob, Patrick, Mr. Krabs, Squidward, Sandy, and Plankton must embark on a quest to retrieve the recipe and save their city...a quest that takes them to the surface world and transforms them into superheroes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Land Before Time IX: Journey to Big Water (2002)
Littlefoot befriends with a mysterious, fun-loving dolphin-like creature named Mo, who is trapped in "new water" caused by heavy rain. The gang then goes on an adventure to the "big water" to bring Mo home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Incredible Mr. Limpet (1964)
Milquetoast Henry Limpet experiences his fondest wish and is transformed into a fish. As a talking fish he assists the US Navy in hunting German submarines during World War II.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMickey's Once Upon a Christmas (1999)
Mickey, Minnie, and their famous friends Goofy, Donald, Daisy and Pluto gather together to reminisce about the love, magic and surprises in three wonder-filled stories of Christmas past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures (2010)
Born on a Baja, California beach in 1959, new hatchling Sammy races across the beach to the ocean while avoiding being caught by seagulls and crabs. Thus begins Sammy's incredible fifty-year ocean journey where he overcomes obstacles, both natural and man-made, while trying to fulfill his dream of travelling around the world. Along the way he meets his best friend, a fellow turtle named Ray, and never forgets about Shelly, a turtle he saved that first day on the beach and the one he's always loved.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMoana 2 (2024)
After receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, Moana journeys alongside Maui and a new crew to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she's ever faced.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNapoleon (1995)
The adventures of Golden Retriever pup Napoleon and his friend, the parrot Birdo Lucci.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisU-571 (2000)
In the midst of World War II, the battle under the sea rages and the Nazis have the upper hand as the Allies are unable to crack their war codes. However, after a wrecked U-boat sends out an SOS signal, the Allies realise this is their chance to seize the 'enigma coding machine'.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004)
There's trouble brewing in Bikini Bottom. Someone has stolen King Neptune's crown, and it looks like Mr. Krab, SpongeBob's boss, is the culprit. Though he's just been passed over for the promotion of his dreams, SpongeBob stands by his boss, and along with his best pal Patrick, sets out on a treacherous mission to Shell City to reclaim the crown and save Mr. Krab's life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Lady from Shanghai (1947)
A romantic drifter gets caught between a corrupt tycoon and his voluptuous wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHappy Feet Two (2011)
Mumble the penguin has a problem: his son Erik, who is reluctant to dance, encounters the Mighty Sven — a penguin who can fly! Things get worse for Mumble when the world is shaken by powerful forces, causing him to bring together the penguin nations and their allies to set things right.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants (2025)
Desperate to be a big guy, SpongeBob sets out to prove his bravery to Mr. Krabs by following The Flying Dutchman – a mysterious swashbuckling ghost pirate – on a seafaring adventure that takes him to the deepest depths of the deep sea, where no Sponge has gone before.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFree Willy 3: The Rescue (1997)
Willy the whale is back, this time threatened by illegal whalers making money off sushi. Jesse, now 16, has taken a job on an orca-researching ship, along with old friend Randolph and a sarcastic scientist, Drew. On the whaler's ship is captain John Wesley and his son, Max, who isn't really pleased about his father's job, but doesn't have the gut to say so. Along the way, Willy reunites with Jesse.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMadagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012)
Animal pals Alex, Marty, Melman, and Gloria are still trying to make it back to New York's Central Park Zoo. They are forced to take a detour to Europe to find the penguins and chimps who broke the bank at a Monte Carlo casino. When French animal-control officer Capitaine Chantel DuBois picks up their scent, Alex and company are forced to hide out in a traveling circus.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Three More (2024)
Four tales unfold in Wes Anderson's anthology of short films adapted from Roald Dahl's beloved stories, "The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar", "The Swan", "The Rat Catcher", and "Poison."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (2020)
When his best friend Gary is suddenly snatched away, SpongeBob takes Patrick on a madcap mission far beyond Bikini Bottom to save their pink-shelled pal.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants?
The closest matches to SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants are Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024), Dolphin Tale 2 (2014) and The Pout-Pout Fish (2026). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants?
Start with Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024), the closest match to SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants.
What is the highest-rated movie like SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants?
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Three More (2024), rated 7.5/10 by 246 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants?
The Pout-Pout Fish (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants?
Yes: Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024), Dolphin Tale 2 (2014) and The Pout-Pout Fish (2026).
How are movies similar to SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside SpongeBob SquarePants: To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.