13 Questions With Steve Hillenburg

Are you ready kids? Get ready to join SpongeBob Squarepants — everyone’s favorite porous invertebrate — and the rest of the underwater inhabitants of Bikini Bottom for the first time in their very own bimonthly comic!

We asked Steve Hillenburg — creator of SpongeBob and publisher of United Plankton Pictures books — about Spongebob’s new venture out of the ocean and into the world of comics!

PREVIEWSworld (PW): This SpongeBob comic book series must be very exciting news for SpongeBob fans – do you have any particular expectations for what the fan feedback will be like?

Stephen Hillenburg (SH): I am hoping that fans in the U.S. will enjoy finally having a SpongeBob comic book.

PW: The SpongeBob TV show has been around for quite a while, which even inspired a couple of feature-length movies, so why did you decide to launch a comic book series now? 

SH: I thought it would be fun for me and for the fans.

PW: Will the storyline of the SpongeBob comics follow the TV show or will there be all new stories and adventures?

SH: All the stories will be original, but always true to the SpongeBob Squarepants series.

PW: Will you be introducing any new characters in the comic series or sticking with the original SpongeBob cast?

SH: Sorry, top secret.

PW: Do you think this comic series will promote SpongeBob to a wider audience?

SH: I’d rather focus on pleasing the audience we have.

PW: Do you think this new comic book series will appeal more to comic book fans or to the fans of the SpongeBob show/movies? 

SH: It would be silly of me not to hope for both.

PW: Will there be any special events to promote the release of the comic books? 

SH: We announced the comic books at san diego comic con this past summer. by summer of 2011 we’ll actually have books.

PW: When you first thought of SpongeBob way back in 1984, did you ever think it would ever reach this enormous magnitude and gain such overwhelming popularity?

SH: Of course not, it’s a series about a sponge.

PW: SpongeBob is set for its eighth season – will there be any more seasons after this or will you be focusing more on the comic books? 

SH: Wouldn’t it be fun to have both?

PW: Besides SpongeBob himself, who would you say is your favorite character – or the most enjoyable to develop?

SH: That would be like choosing between one’s children.

PW: Which character do you think you resemble the most?

SH: I’ll have to ask my wife.

PW: Besides the fact that you studied and taught marine biology, what other things would you say were your inspirations for creating SpongeBob?

SH: I was a fry cook

PW: In closing, what other hopes or comments would you like to share with us regarding this new SpongeBob comic book series? 

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