Throughout the series, Louise’s bunny ears have always been a safety blanket for the character. In a season 3 episode, a bully yanks them off of her head, a shocking moment because she’s never seen not wearing them. This plays right into “The Bob’s Burgers Movie,” as it picks up with the youngest Belcher grappling with her lack of courage without her ears. Schaal knew that it was an important detail to learn about Louise going into the movie. “I feel just very honored that this is the moment that we get to share it with the world in this other big form,” says Schaal (via Comic Book Resources).
I doubt Schaal needed the script, given that the “Bob’s Burgers” crew is more than used to making improvisational dialogue feel completely natural to the story at hand. But regardless, the last thing you want to do is accidentally leak out a notable revelation that the series’ most fervent fans have been waiting for.
Louise’s subplot, amid a larger murder investigation, isn’t as earth-shattering as, say, discovering the origin of the Reavers from “Firefly” in “Serenity,” but it gives an animated sitcom character a surprising amount of nuance. The heartwarming revelation gives Louise the confidence to face the world with or without her colorful headgear. For that reason alone, they did a great job incorporating it into the film, and will likely expand upon it in future seasons of the television series.
“The Bob’s Burgers Movie” is currently streaming on Hulu and HBO Max.