Confession: I never watched Veronica Mars. Not even once, ever.
I know. I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW. Stop yelling at me.
I always meant to, if that helps. And in my defense it was much harder back then, in the olden pre-Internet-streaming days, to get caught up on a show that you heard about too late. You had to wait for the DVDs, for christ’s sakes. And then you had to rent them, usually one at time, via the Netflix mail-order system, because your other one- or two-DVD subscription allotment was being hogged by stupid movies your husband added to your queue that you never felt like watching but he wouldn’t send them back until you watched. And please remember that this was still a huge improvement over having to drive your sorry ass to Blockbuster, land of late fees and broken dreams because OH GREAT, they’re out of everything you want, except for three dozen copies of Monster-in-Law.
And then people started saying that the third season wasn’t very good and Gilmore Girls was starting to really suck around that same time and I got skittish about putting myself through even more television-related heartbreak. And then BAM, it got canceled anyway.
Ahem. Sorry. I’m sure all that backstory was fascinating and necessary, but POINT IS, I guess Imma need to binge-watch Veronica Mars this weekend. I’ve gotta watch this show. Because the INTERNET HAS SPOKEN.
Veronica Mars went off the air in 2007, and apparently many, many attempts at a follow-up movie have made and fallen through. But series creator Rob Thomas and sloth enthusiast Kristen Bell refused to give up. Finally, someone at Warner-Brothers threw down the gauntlet: Prove there’s still enough fan interest in this thing, and we’ll make the damn movie.
So then Thomas and Bell were all, “OH FUCK YEAH BRING IT ON BECAUSE IT’S ALREADY BEEN BROUGHTEN.”
They took the campaign for the Veronica Mars movie to Kickstarter, hoping to raise $2 million in a month. A big, lofty goal, and Thomas even wrote on the campaign page that he knew there was a good chance the whole thing could fail spectacularly.
SPOILER ALERT: The exact opposite happened. The first million was raised in FOUR HOURS. The second million came a few hours after that, smashing all the expectations and past Kickstarter records.
And it hasn’t stopped, either, as fans continue to pledge support —in return for everything from a PDF of the shooting script ($10 donation), all the way up to a speaking role in the movie ($10,000 or more). But sorry! Someone claimed the top-dollar incentive almost immediately, and why wouldn’t they?
You will get a speaking role in the movie. Here’s the scene — Veronica is eating with the man in her life. Things have gotten tense between them. You are the waiter/waitress. You approach the table, and you say, “Your check, sir.” We guarantee you will be on camera as you say the line. Unless you go all hammy and ruin the scene and we have to cut you out, but that would be a sad day for all of us. Just say the line. Don’t over-think it. You’re a waiter. Your motivation is to turn over the table. In addition to appearing in the movie, you’ll receive a framed copy of the page of the script that includes your line. You’ll get an invitation to the premiere and the after party. You are, after all, in the movie. Think of yourself as Guy Fleegman from Galaxy Quest. People will surely want autographs. You’ll also receive the signed movie poster, the Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack, the digital version of the movie, the T-shirt and a pdf of the shooting script.
They should totally add a second speaking part for $50,000, in which you get to say “These pretzels are making me thirsty.”
So all in all, it’s been a pretty amazing 24+ hours for Kickstarter and Veronica Mars fans and Internet Justice in general. A teeming mob with disposable income has spoken and will be rewarded with its beloved cult classic in movie form. If you would like to join them, the Kickstarter campaign is right over here.
Should any other TV shows follow Veronica Mars’ lead? Either for movies or maybe a Netflix-like Arrested Development revival deal? (Off the top of my head I’m thinking Pushing Daisies, Freaks and Geeks, Flight of the Conchords…hell, I’d totally watch a Dollhouse movie now that you know Joss Whedon has the clout to tell any and all studio executives to GFY if they tried to get him to dumb it down or stray from the show’s original concept.)
Read More: Top Ten Series-Ending Cliffhangers
About Amy Corbett Storch
