Paramount Animation is an American animation studio, serving as the animation division and label of Paramount Pictures, a subsidiary of Paramount Skydance. It was founded on July 6, 2011, following the critical and commercial success of Paramount's own Rango and the end of its distribution deal with DreamWorks Animation in 2012. Paramount Animation also collaborates with its sister studio Nickelodeon Movies on a number of projects, especially for those based on franchises from Nickelodeon. Its most successful franchise is the SpongeBob SquarePants film series following the original 2004 film (excluding the streaming spin-off films).
Paramount Animation has produced 12 feature films, with its first film being The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, released on February 6, 2015, and its latest being Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie, released on August 14, 2026. Their next film, Freddy the 13th, is scheduled for release on October 13, 2028.
Films produced by Paramount Animation have grossed a total of $1.178 billion at the worldwide box office. Its highest-grossing film to date is Sponge Out of Water, which grossed $325.1 million. Sponge Out of Water, Transformers One, The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants, and Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie rank among the studio's most critically praised films to date.
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Background
After its theatrical releases of Gulliver's Travels in 1939 and Mr. Bug Goes to Town in 1941, and the closure of Paramount Cartoon Studios (formerly named Famous Studios) in December 1967, Paramount distributed a few animated films from 1973 to 1992 that were produced by outside studios, including Charlotte's Web, Aladdin and His Magic Lamp, Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown, Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!), Heidi's Song, Bebe's Kids, and the live-action/animated hybrid Cool World—the latter of which was directed by former Paramount Cartoon Studios animator Ralph Bakshi.
In the fall of 1993, Canadian animation studio Nelvana signed a multi-year deal to produce five animated feature films in collaboration with Paramount Pictures, with Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall producing; the first two began production the following summer, at a cost of over US$20 million each. Three of the projects were based on books by E. B. White (The Trumpet of the Swan), Clive Barker (The Thief of Always) and Graeme Base (The Sign of the Seahorse); an original production called Mask Vision was also in the works. However, none of the films were produced in this deal.
Following Paramount's merger with Viacom, the studio started releasing several animated films based on Nickelodeon's TV shows, including the Rugrats film trilogy, The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, and Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius; the films produced by Nickelodeon Movies. The studio also released features based on MTV's Beavis and Butt-Head and Comedy Central's South Park.
In 2005, Paramount's new CEO Brad Grey considered building an in-house animation division, because he saw family films as the "sweet spot" of the movie business. The following year, Paramount signed a distribution deal with DreamWorks Animation, starting with Over the Hedge and ending with Rise of the Guardians. During this deal, the studio released Nickelodeon Movies' Barnyard in 2006 and ImageMovers' Beowulf in 2007.
On March 4, 2011, the studio released its first in-house animated film, Nickelodeon Movies' Rango. The film was critically acclaimed and grossed over $245 million at the box office. The success of Rango helped Paramount discover its potential in making successful animated features on its own. In June of that year, the studio acquired the rights to produce an animated film based on Penny Arcade's 2010 webcomic The New Kid.
History
Brad Grey era (2011–2017)
In July 2011, in the wake of Rango's success, the high hopes for The Adventures of Tintin, and the departure of DreamWorks Animation upon completion of their distribution contract with Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted and Rise of the Guardians in 2012, Paramount announced the formation of a new animation division. The studio would initially produce one animated film a year with a maximum budget of $100 million. A key portion of the films would be co-produced with Nickelodeon and they would be cross-promoted at Nickelodeon's theme parks and hotels.
In October 2011, Paramount named a former president of Walt Disney Feature Animation, David Stainton, president of Paramount Animation. In February 2012, Stainton resigned for personal reasons, with Paramount Film Group's president, Adam Goodman, stepping in to directly oversee the studio. It was also announced that The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, a standalone sequel to 2004's The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, would be the studio's first film and would be released in 2014. A short time after, the film was delayed to early 2015.
In August 2012, Variety reported that Paramount Animation was in the process of starting development of several animated films in collaboration with Nickelodeon, Mary Parent, and J. J. Abrams. Besides the SpongeBob sequel, Paramount Animation considered adapting Dora the Explorer, The Legend of Korra, and Monkey Quest into films. The increase in animated film production was due to DreamWorks Animation being in talks with other studios to distribute their post-2012 animated films.
On July 31, 2013, Paramount Animation announced that they were developing a new live-action/animated franchise in the vein of the Transformers series, which was titled Monster Trucks. Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger were set to write the film's script, Chris Wedge (director of 2002's Ice Age) was set to direct the film, and Mary Parent was set to produce the film, with an initial release date set for May 29, 2015.
The studio's first film, The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, was released on February 6, 2015, to positive reviews and was a box office success, grossing over $325 million worldwide and becoming the fifth highest grossing animated film of 2015. That same month, Paramount fired Adam Goodman due to the studio's thin film slate and Goodman greenlighting box office bombs at the studio. Paramount announced another SpongeBob film later that year.
Jim Gianopulos/Mireille Soria era (2017–2021)
In April 2017, Paramount ended its deal with Locksmith Animation when Paramount chairman and CEO Brad Grey was replaced by Jim Gianopulos, who decided that their projects did not fit in with Paramount's other upcoming releases. Locksmith formed a multi-year production deal with 20th Century Fox four months later.
In July 2017, Paramount Pictures named former DreamWorks Animation co-president Mireille Soria as the president of the studio. Soria restructured the studio, increasing its number of employees from 10 to over 110, and created a new goal of releasing two tentpole animated films a year with different animation styles and genres. She would also look over the completion of Sherlock Gnomes and Wonder Park, which were in production before her arrival. That same month, Skydance announced its first two animated feature films for Skydance Animation — Split (later retitled Spellbound) and Luck. Both films would be distributed by Paramount Pictures as part of their deal with Skydance. On October 10, 2017, Bill Damaschke was hired to head the division as president of animation and family entertainment.
The studio released its third film, Sherlock Gnomes, on March 23, 2018, and became a critical and financial disappointment, grossing $90.3 million on a $59 million budget.
In April 2018, Paramount Pictures named former Blue Sky Studios and Nickelodeon Movies producer Ramsey Ann Naito as the executive vice president of the studio. She later left the company in order to become the head of animation at Nickelodeon. In the same month, Soria greenlit the studio's first three animated features under her leadership to be released in 2020 and beyond: The SpongeBob Movie: It's a Wonderful Sponge (later renamed Sponge On the Run), Reel FX's Monster on the Hill (later renamed Rumble), and Skydance Animation's Luck.
On January 14, 2019, Mireille Soria announced that the team at Paramount Animation will no longer work with Skydance Animation because of their hiring of former Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar CCO John Lasseter as the head of animation. Luck and Spellbound were still going to be released by Paramount Pictures without the Paramount Animation brand until Apple TV+ acquired the distribution rights to both films in December 2020 and made a larger pact with Skydance Animation in February 2021. Apple Original Films and Netflix would replace Paramount for Luck and Spellbound respectively.
Brian Robbins/Ramsey Ann Naito era (2021–2025)
On September 30, 2021, shortly after Brian Robbins replaced Jim Gianopulos as the chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures, it was announced that Ramsey Ann Naito would replace Mireille Soria as the president of Paramount Animation in addition to her current role as the president of Nickelodeon Animation Studio.
The studio's sixth film Rumble was released on December 15, 2021, on Paramount+. It was originally expected to be released in theaters on February 18, 2022, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was later moved to Paramount+. It received mixed reviews.
On January 20, 2022, Latifa Ouaou (a veteran of both Illumination and DreamWorks Animation via Universal Pictures) was hired as the executive vice president of movies and global franchises for both Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation Studio. In this position, Ouaou will oversee both streaming and theatrical films for the two companies. It was also revealed that The Tiger’s Apprentice (which was originally being directed by Carlos Baena) will now be directed by Raman Hui, with Paul Watling and Yong Duk Jhun being co-directors. Bob Persichetti (the Academy Award-winning co-director of Sony Pictures Animation's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) had also joined the film as a producer.
On July 26, 2023, Robbins revealed in a Variety article that the original film Under the Boardwalk would be released straight to Paramount+ instead of theaters (similar Rumble). He stated, “We’re not going to release an expensive original animated movie and just pray people will come,” while also pointing to the box office underperformances of Pixar animated films such as Lightyear and Elemental. This statement received widespread criticism on social media, including from those in the industry such as Guillermo del Toro, Jorge R. Gutierrez, and Christopher Miller. This also contradicts an earlier statement by the division’s president Naito, who stated in a Deadline interview that she plans to release original animated features to continue building franchises. Under the Boardwalk, the studio's seventh film was instead given a limited theatrical release under the Nickelodeon Movies imprint. It was released on October 27, 2023, with a video-on-demand release on November 7.
The studio's eighth film, The Tiger's Apprentice, was released on February 2, 2024 on Paramount+, after facing several theatrical delays and its theatrical release being cancelled. It received mixed reviews from critics.
David Ellison/Jennifer Dodge era (2025–present)
After the merger of Paramount and Skydance was completed on August 7, 2025, David Ellison replaced Brian Robbins as the new CEO and chairman of Paramount Pictures. For the short term, Ramsey Ann Naito would remain as the president of Paramount Animation while stepping down from her role as president of Nickelodeon Animation Studio. Skydance Animation would continue to be operated separately under John Lasseter and focus on its multi-year output deal with Netflix.
On October 29, 2025, following mass layoffs at parent company Paramount Skydance, Naito announced she would be stepping down as president of Paramount Animation, with her saying in a note to staff, "I want to share with you that I am leaving the company and closing this very special chapter with all of you."
On November 11, 2025, former president of Spin Master Entertainment and Consumer Products Jennifer Dodge was named the new President of Paramount Animation, stepping into the role vacated by Naito at the end of October during the sweeping Paramount Skydance layoffs of some 1,000 employees.
Its eleventh film, The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants, was released on December 19, 2025, to a mostly positive critical reception and also a box office success, grossing $169 million.
Its twelfth film, Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie, was released on August 14, 2026.
Logo
Initially, Paramount Animation did not have its own opening logo. Its first four features (as well as 2024's Transformers One) just used the standard Paramount logo.
On September 19, 2019, Paramount Animation introduced a new animated logo featuring a character nicknamed "Star Skipper". When Mireille Soria came to Paramount Animation, one of the first goals set by Jim Gianopulos was to make a logo for the division. The crew wanted to put a female character in the logo because the studio's team is mostly female, and according to Soria, it captures "the magic" of the division. The logo and the character of Star Skipper were designed by Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie lead visual development artist and art director Christopher Zibach and animated by ATK PLN and Reel FX Creative Studios. The music is the same as the standard Paramount Pictures logo, which is composed by Michael Giacchino. This logo debuted in front of The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run in 2020 and appeared in the next three films: 2021's Rumble, 2023's Under the Boardwalk (except theatrical prints, which used the 2008 Nickelodeon Movies logo instead), and 2024's The Tiger's Apprentice.
Starting with 2025's Smurfs, an updated version of the Paramount Animation logo was introduced, with the Star Skipper mascot being quietly retired, and the logo now starts with the standard Paramount Pictures logo before transitioning into the Paramount Animation logo.
Process
Similar to Warner Bros. Pictures Animation, Illumination, and Sony Pictures Animation, Paramount Animation outsources its animation production to other animation studios such as Mikros Image, Reel FX, and Industrial Light & Magic (Transformers One). Rumble was developed outside of Paramount Animation by Reel FX, but the studio acquired the rights to the film and co-produced it.
Like 20th Century Animation with animated films under 20th Century Studios, the studio also acts as somewhat of a distribution label for animated films that are made under or acquired by Paramount Pictures. The earliest case of this would be the aborted deal with Locksmith Animation. Additionally, Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank, originally expected to be distributed by Open Road Films and STX Entertainment, was acquired by Paramount to be distributed under Paramount Animation, later being distributed under Nickelodeon Movies.
Paramount Animation does not have an in-house animation style. According to Mireille Soria, each film has its own unique style created by the filmmakers, which would be helped by outsourcing animation to different vendors.
When Ramsey Ann Naito took charge of Paramount Animation in September 2021, she brought over the culture of the Nickelodeon Animation Studio, which she describes as "artist-driven" and "creative". Both companies are now united under one team, in a move different from Disney and Universal's animation studios (Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar post-Lasseter for the former and Illumination and DreamWorks for the latter).