Death; Peter Bennett, Spongebob Hans died on May 17, at age 57
Peter Bennett, an extended-serving art director for the SpongeBob SquarePants franchise on Nickelodeon, passed away peacefully on Friday, May 17, 2024, he was 57 years old. As well as being the hand actor for the character Hans after “Suds” (although Tom Kenny provides his voice), Peter was most known for being one of the primary backdrop painters in the series, which spanned a total of 182 episodes between 1999 and 2014. However, his voice was given by Tom Kenny. For the most part, Bennett was involved with the production of each and every episode of the main series, as well as the initial episodes of the spin-off movies. His sole position outside of the SpongeBob franchise was as a backdrop painter for ChalkZone between seasons 2 and 3, while the SpongeBob team was preoccupied with the production of the first film.
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Additionally, he was well-known for his role as a primary art director for a total of 161 episodes that aired between the years 2005 and 2021. Among the episodes that he was responsible for directing were “Squeaky Boots,” “SB-129,” “Hooky,” and “Wet Painters,” amongst many others. In the majority of cases, his acrylic paintings are utilized for backdrops, advertising materials, and particularly detailed close-up shots. His paintings are instantly recognized to fans who have been watching the program for several years. In addition, he has been responsible for the art direction of the program ChalkZone, the first two SpongeBob movies, and the spin-offs Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years and The Patrick Star program. Additionally, he has created artwork for SpongeBob Comics, Nautical Nonsense: A Tribute to SpongeBob SquarePants, and San Diego Comic-Con 2016.
On his Instagram account, SpongeBob writer Kenny Pittenger shared the sad news that Peter had passed away the previous day. In the post that he made, Kenny paid respect to his long-time buddy and coworker by stating, “Last night, we lost a long-time friend and coworker.” In addition to being an outstanding ping-pong player, Peter Bennett served as the Art Director for SpongeBob for a number of years. One of his works is illustrated here. He is going to be missed.
