SpongeBob in Cement: Animated Icon Gets Hollywood Handprint Honor

SpongeBob SquarePants, Nickelodeon’s eternally optimistic sea sponge, achieved a classic Hollywood milestone by imprinting his hands and feet in cement outside the legendary TCL Chinese Theatre.

The ceremony celebrated the character’s remarkable 26-year cultural impact since his 1999 debut.

Longtime voice actor Tom Kenny, who has voiced SpongeBob from the beginning, expressed his awe at the “wild ride,” while special guest Mark Hamill—who appears in the upcoming “The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants”—shared his childhood memories of the historic theater and praised the franchise as a “superbly silly” cultural landmark.

The event was also attended by fellow voice actors Bill Fagerbakke (Patrick Star) and Rodger Bumpass (Squidward Tentacles), solidifying the animated show’s place in entertainment history.