One of the most ardent fandoms on this planet–or any other–is that of Joel Hodgson and the theater snark kalediscopic buffet known as Mystery Science Theater 3000. This month, Hodgson announced a novel crowdfunding campaign to bring MST3K Season 14 back to TV.
From his website, housing the “Showmaker” crowdsourcing website:
Why are we doing another crowdfunding campaign? That’s simple. The world needs more MST3K. Doesn’t it give you a thrill that this scrawny movie riffing puppet show is about to enter its 35th year? That’s because of you, our faithful fans: you keep us going.
We brought it back with you, the MST3K community. As long as you all want more episodes, we will keep making them. And… we’ll now be hosting our crowdfunding campaigns right here on MST3K.com!
Season 14 of Mystery Science Theater 3000 will hope to raise $4.8 million for the following:
- 6 new shorts
- 6 new episodes of MST3K
- 18 new “surgically enhanced classic episodes upgraded to 1080p from the original 480p”
- And further development of the Gizmoplex online theater for distribution
What if the dedicated fans of Joel, Tom Servo, GPC, and Croooooooow goes past the near $5 million finish line? There’s more in store for geeks worldwide.
Mystery Science Theater 3000 Fund Drive Could Be a Birthday Gift
As it turns out this particular fund raising event coincides with MST3K turning 35! In a release announcing the crowdfunding campaign for Mystery Science Theater 3000, Hodgson shared about the celebratory function:
“I’m thrilled that next year, ‘MST3K’ turns 35. Someone recently asked me if I ever imagined the show would be around for 35 years when I created it, and I had to pause and say, ‘No. I didn’t.’ Our status as a long-running comedy series with robot puppets riffing on B-movies was ridiculous when it started, and now, 35 years later, it borders on ludicrous.
That being said, in all seriousness, the enduring success of the show is a tribute to the collaboration between our many talented writers, performers, and craftspeople, and our generous, loyal audience.”
This is actually the second crowdsourcing campaign for beloved B-movie cavalcade. In 2021, Season 13 came to Netflix as a result of the generosity of Nerd Nation. The MSTies funded 13 new episodes and shorts, and the construction of the Gizmoplex, the proprietary streaming platform for Joel Hodgson’s passion project.
Should you wish MST3K to get to nine episodes and shorts, that’ll be $6.1 million. Do you think 12 episodes and shorts of back seat bickering is more suitable? Help Joel reach $7.4 million.
If you’re wondering where the money will go, Joel has you covered:
- 65% of the funds will fund new episodes.
- 29% of the remaining budget will create physical rewards and paying everyone involved (i.e., Think WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes )
- 5% will benefit campaign fees
- And 1% will provide maintenance of the Gizmoplex, the independent streaming platform that MST3K built so “it wouldn’t rely on networks to survive.”
If you have some residual income laying around, and you’re proud of your nerd status, this is a worthwhile venture for a birthday gift. Visit the official site to learn more and help the cause.
