‘Veronica Mars’ Kickstarter Sets Pledging Record
Never underestimate a dedicated following. Fans of the canceled UPN/CW show Veronica Mars rushed a Kickstarter page after it was posted yesterday in hopes of a movie version of the crime mystery series. Writing on the Kickstarter page, series creator Rob Thomas revealed he had an agreement with Warner Bros. to take the show to the big screen if he could scrounge up $2 million by April 12th with the campaign. Fans moved fast, pledging $1 million after only four hours and 24 minutes, setting a new record as the fastest campaign to hit that threshold. According to Reuters, more than 31,000 people pledged to the project less than 24 hours after it launched, and donations ranged from $1 to $10,000.
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“[Star] Kristen [Bell] and I met with the Warner Bros. brass, and they agreed to allow us to take this shot. They were extremely cool about it, as a matter of fact,” Thomas wrote on the Kickstarter page. “Their reaction was, if you can show there’s enough fan interest to warrant a movie, we’re on board. So this is it. This is our shot. I believe it’s the only one we’ve got.”
Veronica Mars ran from 2004 to 2007 and starred Kristen Bell as a high schooler, and later a college student, who’s also a private investigator. Thomas had written a movie script soon after the show’s cancelation, but said Warner Bros. didn’t want to fund it at the time, questioning the level of interest. Bell is on board, and wrote on the project’s page that they “will make the sleuthiest, snarkiest, it’s-all-fun-and-games” film possible.
The Kickstarter promises various gifts for backers, including a copy of the movie’s script for $10 and a custom shirt with a copy of the script for $25. But the big winner is the person who pledged the $10,000 – he or she will get a speaking role in the film.