With Robert Eggers' Nosferatu hitting theaters on Christmas Day, those who are unfamiliar with the story of Count Orlok can look to its previous film iterations like Werner Herzog's Nosferatu the Vampyre, and the original 1922 silent film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, both of which are currently available to stream for free on Tubi. Younger audiences looking forward to Eggers' latest film may not have seen these two adaptations, but if you grew up watching SpongeBob SquarePants, you probably recognize the original Count Orlok, played by Max Schreck, from one of the show's most iconic episodes, "Graveyard Shift." The Season 2 episode not only introduces us to the so-called Hash-Slinging Slasher but to the now 100-year-old vampire film Nosferatu in a hilariously weird non-sequitur ending.
What Is "Graveyard Shift" About?
Image via Nickelodeon Even before the appearance of Count Orlok, “Graveyard Shift” is considered one of the show’s creepiest episodes, introducing the legend of the Hash-Slinging Slasher. When Mr. Krabs (Clancy Brown) decides to keep the Krusty Krab open overnight, Squidward (Rodger Bumpass) decides to mess with SpongeBob (Tom Kenny) by making up a creepy story about a dead fry cook who accidentally cuts off his hand and replaces it with a rusty spatula before being killed by a bus.
Every Tuesday night, the Hash-Sling Slasher allegedly returns to the Krusty Krab and makes his presence known by flickering the lights, calling the restaurant without saying anything, and tapping on the window with his spatula hand. When these three omens come to pass, a silhouette matching Squirdward’s description shows up to Krusty Krab, but it's revealed to be just a fish looking for a job application, and they soon discover it was Nosferatu — of F.W. Murnau's 1922 silent film Nosferatu – who was messing with them all along. Nosferatu gives them a mischievous smile, and the episode ends without any further explanation.
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'SpongeBob SquarePants' Count Orlok Cameo Made One of Its Best Episodes Even More Memorable
Image via Film Arts Guild In 2022, SpongeBob writer and storyboard director Jay Lender told Polygon that “Graveyard Shift” wasn’t always supposed to end with a cameo from Count Orlok, and instead feature a new character named Floorboard Harry, who lives underneath the Krusty Krab. They discarded the idea, and Lender came up with the idea of revealing the culprit to be Count Orlok, inspired by the now-defunct magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland. This is where Lender saw the image of Count Orlok standing creepily in a doorway without knowing the picture’s real origins, saying, “My first experience with Orlok and with that image is as this disjointed non sequitur. When the moment came that I needed to come up with a replacement horror non sequitur, that image was already in that slot in my brain.” And for the record, Lender was fully aware that the vampire's name was not actually Nosferatu, but used the title of the film instead of Count Orlok because it was more recognizable and sounded funnier when delivered in a sing-songy tone.
"Graveyard Shift" is one of SpongeBob's highest-rated episodes, and anyone who grew up watching the beloved animated series will remember the mythos and eerily silhouette of the Hash-Slinging Slasher, but it's the unexpected Nosferatu cameo at the very end that cemented it as one of the show's most memorable. With this episode, Lender made the image of Count Orlok standing in a doorway instantly recognizable to a generation who likely would never have seen or heard of Nosferatu otherwise. After building suspense throughout the episode, SpongeBob and Squidward are relieved to discover the Hash-Slinging Slasher Squidward came up with hadn’t really manifested and showed up to the Krusty Krab to attack them. When Nosferatu reveals himself to be the one behind the flickering lights, they react playfully annoyed but seemingly not too surprised by his presence and penchant for silly pranks.
The use of such a silly non sequitur to punctuate one of the creepiest episodes of SpongeBob is emblematic of the often surreal humor that defined SpongeBob and made it so appealing to children and adults revisiting a childhood classic twenty years later. "Graveyard Shift" may have been Nosferatu's first appearance on SpongeBob, but funnily enough, it would not be his last, with the black-and-white vampire appearing sporadically throughout seasons 11-14 and in its recent prequel spin-off Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years. Its longevity is undeniable, and it's fair to posit that before Eggers' upcoming film was announced, millions of millennials/Gen Z were only familiar with Nosferatu as "the vampire from that one episode of SpongeBob."
SpongeBob SquarePants is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.
Spongebob Squarepants is an animated comedy created by Stephen Hillenburg and starring voices from Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, and Rodger Bumpass. The series revolves around a sea sponge that goes on many misadventures with his friends Patrick, Squidward, and Sandy Cheeks in the lands of Bikini Bottom and the surrounding sea.
Release Date May 1, 1999
Seasons 14
English (US) ·