Help Kickstart That "Veronica Mars" Movie

The idea of a feature film version of  Rob Thomas' teen detective drama series "Veronica Mars" has been around since the show ended its 3 year run in 2007. Both Thomas and star Kristen Bell wanted to get it done.  It almost came close a few times, but the suits at rights holder Warner Bros. were not "convinced there was enough interest to warrant a major studio-sized movie".

Now, Thomas is using crowd-sourcing site Kickstarter to help fund the movie says  EW

Fans will be able to contribute to the project starting today, and Thomas has one month to generate the $2 million minimum necessary to get the movie made. If the project goes forward, Thomas will write and direct the film which would be shot early this Summer for an early 2014 release. The scope of the movie will also be determined by how much money is raised.

There's also a brief synopsis: "Life has taken Veronica away from Neptune. In the years since spoiling Keith's chances to be reelected sheriff, Veronica hasn't taken a case. But something big is about to bring her back home and back to her calling - which just happens to be around her ten year high school reunion."

Thomas says that "Warner Bros. still owns Veronica Mars and we would need their blessing and cooperation to pull this off. Kristen 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. Their reaction was, if you can show there’s enough fan interest to warrant a movie, we’re on board."

The way the site works--If the project doesn't meet its funding goal within the time limit - not only does no one pay, but that will be it for 'Veronica' as there will be no more movie talk about it ever.

By 2.45pm ET, –after just a few hours old and with 30 days still to go – it had made more than $960,000 dollars--a record for the site.

Here's the clever and fun video pitch



While Kickstarter has been used to fund numerous short films and even indie films it has never been used for a film based on a high-profile existing property like this. If it works, it could completely change the dynamic of the  film biz and we could see other unfairly canceled shows (or even film franchises) with passionate fan bases being revived.

Once the "Mars" campaign is done--Let's do the same for that Friday Night Lights film based on the TV series that has stalled out.