Synopsis: SpongeBob and his Bikini Bottom friends set sail on their biggest adventure yet! When an attempt to prove he’s a true big guy accidentally summons the fearsome ghost pirate The Flying Dutchman, SpongeBob and Patrick are swept into a wild underworld quest. With colossal challenges ahead and a rescue crew on their trail, SpongeBob discovers that real courage shines brightest when friends face the unknown together.
Cast: Ice Spice (Isis Gaston), George Lopez, Arturo Castro, Sherry Cola, Regina Hall and Mark Hamill make up the voice cast alongside franchise stars Tom Kenny, Clancy Brown, Rodger Bumpass, Bill Fagerbakke, Carolyn Lawrence and Mr. Lawrence.
Based on the SpongeBob SquarePants series created by Stephen Hillenburg, The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants is directed by Derek Drymon from a screenplay by Pam Brady and Matt Lieberman, story by Marc Ceccarelli & Kaz and Pam Brady. Producers are Lisa Stewart, Pam Brady and Aaron Dem. Executive producers are Marc Ceccarelli, Vincent Waller, Pete Chiappetta, Anthony Tittanegro and Andrew Lary.
CALLING ALL GOOFY GOOBERS! (ROCK!) Are ya ready for a deep dive into the world of SpongeBob SquarePants? The SpongeBob YouTube channel is THE PLACE for all fan-favorite SpongeBob moments! Subscribe now at https://www.youtube.com/SpongeBobOfficial!
Follow NickALive! on Twitter, Reddit, Instagram, Facebook, Google News, Tumblr, via RSS and morefor the latest Nickelodeon Japan, SpongeBob SquarePants and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem News and Highlights!
First-of-Its-Kind Japan Preschool Exchange Lets Global Families Experience Real Japanese School Life -- With a Little Help from Peppa Pig
Official promotional partnership key visual
TOKYO, Aug. 5, 2025 -- Japan Preschool Exchange (JPE), a cultural exchange program, invites global families to experience daily life at real Japanese preschools—from snowy play to rice harvesting in nature-rich communities. Families can join for 1 to 3 weeks with no Japanese knowledge required. JPE partners with over 30 trusted preschools nationwide, supporting local sustainability and offering unforgettable experiences.
Since launching in 2021, JPE has welcomed over 1,000 participants, with 95% saying they would return. The program has earned multiple government awards. Founded by CEO Masaya Yamamoto after staying with his daughter at a rural preschool in Hokkaido, JPE promotes cross-cultural learning and nature-connected childhoods.
To reach more families worldwide, JPE is launching an official promotion with PEPPA PIG, Hasbro's beloved preschool brand. Families who register for the experience during the campaign (from 1st August, 2025 to 30th June, 2026) will receive a PEPPA PIG Welcome Digital Guide, which includes a variety of activity sheets for kids.
Embracing Peppa Pig's ethos of inspiring kids' confidence, the campaign invites families to jump in together and savor the precious early childhood years through real-life adventures in Japanese preschools.
JPE also welcomes school groups for educational trips, joining a global network of cultural exchange communities.
KitchHike is a Japan-based brand studio and platform empowering rural regions through place-based innovation. As population decline becomes a global reality, KitchHike sees Japan's rural communities not as outliers, but as prototypes of the planet's future. It leads projects driven by the mission: "Amplify local potential. Shape a sustainable planet." https://kitchhike.jp/en
About Hasbro
Hasbro is a leading games, IP, and toy company whose mission is to create joy and community through the magic of play. Hasbro reaches over 500 million kids, families, and fans globally through physical and digital games, video games, toys, licensed consumer products, location-based entertainment, film, TV, and more.
About PEPPA PIG
PEPPA PIG is a British preschool animated television series that has aired for over 20 years, across 10 seasons in over 180 territories. The series follows Peppa, a cheeky little piggy who lives with her family - younger brother George, baby sister Evie, Mummy Pig and Daddy Pig - as well as her diverse community of friends.
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Stream all your favorite Nick Jr. shows on Paramount+! Try Paramount+ for FREE at ParamountPlus.com!
WINX CLUB: Six fairies, six friends, one amazing saga!
Join Bloom, Stella, Flora, Aisha, Tecna, and Musa as they transform into super-heroines and fight against evil to save the Magic Dimension! Endless magic, friendship, romance, fashion, and adventure await!
PARAMOUNT+ EXPANDS DISTRIBUTION FOOTPRINT IN JAPAN THROUGH PARTNERSHIP WITH LEMINO
Viewers in Japan Gain Access to A Paramount+ Mountain of Entertainment via À la carte Lemino Channel from April 18
April 18, 2025 – Paramount+, the global streaming service from Paramount (NASDAQ: PARA, PARAA), announced today a new deal in Japan with a leading over-the-top streaming service, Lemino, operated by Japan’s top telco, NTT Docomo. Through the deal, viewers in the market will be able to enjoy Paramount+ via Lemino Channel, which is available as an à la carte subscription on the platform for a monthly fee of JPY770 inclusive of tax.
Marco Nobili, Executive Vice President and International General Manager at Paramount+, said: “Paramount+ continues to have a strong footprint in international markets around the world, streaming some of the most-watched global series from YELLOWSTONE to LANDMAN. By partnering with Lemino, Paramount+ will be delivering many of the very best films, franchises and series to even more Japanese fans.”
This is the latest in a series of strategic partnerships that Paramount+ has established in the market. These include deals with J:COM and WOWOW INC., as well as with Amazon Prime Video Channels as an à la carte subscription. More recently, Paramount secured a licensing deal with Japan Airlines (JAL), to offer a selection of titles from Paramount+ as part of the airline’s in-flight entertainment.
Paramount+ delivers entertainment for the whole family, with hit movies, exclusive originals, and iconic series across every genre from Paramount’s world-renowned brands and production studios, including CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and SHOWTIME®.
The Paramount+ line-up includes blockbuster hits and popular movies such as A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE, original Paramount+ series TULSA KING starring Sylvester Stallone, and THE AGENCY starring Michael Fassbender, Richard Gere, and Jeffrey Wright, among others; CBS drama series MATLOCK, starring Emmy and Academy Award winner Kathy Bates; premium content spanning kids’ and family favorites like PAW PATROL, and much-loved local music event shows such as MTV VMAJ.
Paramount+ boasts some of the biggest originals from recent years, including hit series YELLOWSTONE, LANDMAN, HALO, and MAYOR OF KINGSTOWN; and an extensive library that includes blockbuster movies from Paramount Pictures like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE and TRANSFORMERS. It is the home of iconic franchises such as STAR TREK and SOUTH PARK, and offers Nickelodeon favorites such as SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS and DORA, as well as reality shows and much more.
In Japan, Paramount+ is available on J:COM Stream, WOWOW On Demand, Prime Video, and now Lemino Channel.
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About Paramount+
Paramount+ is a global digital subscription video streaming service from Paramount that features a mountain of premium entertainment for audiences of all ages. Internationally, the streaming service features an expansive library of original series, hit shows, and popular movies across every genre from world-renowned brands and production studios, including SHOWTIME®, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures, and the Smithsonian Channel™, in addition to a robust offering of premier local content. The service currently lives in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Australia, Latin America, the Caribbean, Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Switzerland and Japan.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the iconic Transformers franchise, and to celebrate the milestone, the official Takara Tomy YouTube channel has unveiled a full-length Transformers 40th Anniversary Special, an anime movie animated by Studio Trigger!
The 2D-animated short-film is an impressive homage to the 40 years of history of the franchise from G1 to the present, including Transformers: EarthSpark, and is animated by using classic cell animation style.
For decades now, Transformers has been more than meets the eye. The franchise saw its unlikely start spark after Takara Tomy, a popular toy brand from Japan, teamed up with Hasbro in America. The cross-cultural deal brought the Transformers to life, and it did not take long for its lore to blow up. From TV shows to blockbuster movies, Transformers has done plenty during its 40-year run. And today, the IP is testing its limits with a special anime created by Studio Trigger.
The Malto family from 'Transformers: EarthSpark'.
Studio Trigger has worked in several famous anime series like Kill la Kill, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, SSSS.Gridman, and SSSS.Dynazenon, among other projects.
The director, storyboard artist, producer and animation director is Amemiya Satoshi, director of the film Gridman Universe. The video uses the song “Mayday” by popular Japanese band BUMP OF CHICKEN, released in 2007.
The IP already has ties to anime given its origins with Takara Tomy and designer Shoji Kawamori, who created the hit mech anime Macross, and his love of technology led him to design a set of toys with Takara Tomy. These toys, known as Diaclone, became the basis for Transformers with help from Hasbro. So as you can see, Transformers has a solid history with Japanese creators.
The movie arrives just as Paramount Pictures and Hasbro are about to release Transformers One, the franchise's next big project. The animated movie, which stars Chris Hemsworth, is slated to premiere in theaters on September 20. The film will take fans back in time as Transformers One focuses on the origins of Optimus Prime and Megatron. Once allies, the two mechs are now mortal foes, and Transformers has long teased their early days on Cybertron. Soon, fans will get the chance to see that history play out, and reviews for Transformers One are nothing but positive at this time.
The anime, as you can see below, is nothing short of a love letter to Transformers. The short features all of our favorite Autobots as heroes like Optimus Prime take to the screen. Studio Trigger did not hold back with its animation here, and we have director Akira Amemiya to thank for the visual feast.
I'm sure you'll have fun catching all the cameos, characters and Easter Eggs featured on the video, including the colorful Bump Of Chicken x Transformers Optimus Prime revealed some days ago. Watch the video now below!
Taiki Matsuno, the Japanese actor and voice actor who voiced SpongeBob in the Japanese dub of SpongeBob SquarePants, sadly passed away from a cerebral hemorrhage on Sunday, June 26, aged 56.
Matsuno voiced the beloved fry cook in the Japanese dub of the show for nearly 20 years - from the first movie to Season 13 - and was known for how well his performance matched the American original.
The Tokyo native started his voice-acting career at the age of 10 and had roles in anime series such as One Piece, Inuyasha, Sailor Moon SuperS and Kindaichi Case Files, and voiced several characters in the Super Sentai franchise.
R.I.P. Taiki Matsuno, 16th October, 1967 - 26th June 2024.
Takara Tomy Co., Ltd. has announced that Japanese television station TV Tokyo will premiere Transformers: EarthSpark on Sunday 1st October 2023 at 9:15am. Following launch, new episodes will continue to rollout on TV Tokyo every Sunday at 9:15am. Following their broadcasts, each episode will be available on TVer and will be made available official Takara Tomy YouTube channels. The Japanese dub of Transformers: EarthSpark includes actors Tetsusho Genda, Shigeru Chiba, and Ryohei Kimura, with Miwa Iwanami serving as sound director.
Additionally, a Transformers: EarthSpark toy range will go on sale in Japan on Saturday 28th October 2023, and will be available to buy at toy outlets nationwide, online shops and the official Takara Tomy shopping website.
PARAMOUNT+ DEBUTS IN JAPAN IN PARTNERSHIP WITH J:COM AND WOWOW INC.
Paramount+ Expands Streaming Footprint With The Service Now Available In All Top 10 International SVOD Growth Markets
Japan, Dec 6, 2023 – Paramount+ today officially marked its entry into Japan with the launch on J:COM, one of Japan’s top cable television operators and broadband internet providers, and WOWOW Inc., the top premium pay channel in the market. With this launch, Paramount+ is now officially present in all the top ten international SVOD growth markets.
The launch of Paramount+ brings unique stories, iconic stars, and a mountain of entertainment to Japanese audience, who are now able to enjoy the streaming service through the on-demand services of both J:COM and WOWOW, at no additional costs for their subscribers.
The line-up includes Paramount+ originals such as TULSA KING, MAYOR OF KINGSTOWN, and STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS which are exclusive to Paramount+ and already available at launch and for the first time in Japan; Hollywood hits like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, BUMBLEBEE, and G.I. JOE from Paramount Pictures; CBS TV shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and NCIS including the new NCIS: SYDNEY, and popular SHOWTIME® titles, such as DEXTER and RAY DONOVAN. With something for everyone, the Paramount+ offering also includes animated favorites, such as Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants, and fans can watch more South Park on Paramount+ than anywhere else in Japan.
Marco Nobili, Executive Vice President and International General Manager for Paramount+,
said: “The launch of Paramount+ in Japan marks a pivotal moment in our expansion, as our footprint now spans all of the top ten international markets. We are incredibly excited to launch with two great local partners, J:COM and WOWOW, as this allows us to combine our powerful global offering with our partners’ local platforms and content. I am confident this combination will create the right mix that our fans won’t want to miss.”
Yoichi Iwaki, President, Representative Director of J:COM, said: “I am delighted that through J:COM's network, we can deliver attractive films and series from Paramount+ to everyone in Japan. I am confident that the exciting Paramount+ line-up will bring a new viewing experience to the Japanese audience. Together with Paramount and WOWOW, we look forward to exploring new dimensions of entertainment.”
Akira Tanaka, Representative Director, and CEO of WOWOW, said: “It is exciting that we are able to deliver the array of attractive content from Paramount+ to Japanese viewers through WOWOW On Demand, starting this December. This launch marks a significant moment for WOWOW, which has long been delivering outstanding content from around the world as a premium pay channel. Together with Paramount and J:COM, we will bring Paramount’s high-quality content and diverse offering, to provide new thrilling and engaging content to the Japanese entertainment scene.”
