Academy Award winner J.K. Simmons has been cast in Hulu’s Veronica Mars revival. Veronica Mars began back in the early 2000s on the UPN starring then a virtually unknown Kristen Bell. The detective series aired for three seasons with its last year airing on the fledgling network CW before it was cancelled on a cliffhanger. The series returned for a Kickstarter movie that wrapped up the storyline of the series in 2014.
The Hulu series, which will premiere on the streaming service in 2019, is set to be more of revival than a sequel, hoping to garner new fans with a brand-new storyline. The revival’s cast will be primarily made up of returning face from the original series, there are a few notable newcomers. Westworld’s Clifton Collins Jr. has signed on as well as Kristen Bell’s current Good Place co-star Kirby Howell-Baptise. J.K. Simmons is perhaps the biggest name of them all and the most sinister of the new characters.
According to THR, the actor known for his roles in Whiplash and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy will be played Clyde Prickett. Clyde is an ex-con who met one of the revival’s central antagonists Richard Casablancas Sr. (David Starzyk) in prison. The original series saw Casablanacas be imprisoned for his crimes but by the time of the revival he is out and still hanging around a similarly freed Clyde. Clyde was the first to offer the disgraced real estate developer protection in prison and become in his partner in literal crime. The two might be out of prison but they’re still involved in the criminal life with Clyde being described as the far smarter of the two.
It is unknown how many installments of the 8-episode revival Simmons will appear in as Clyde Prickett. The character description does make it seem as if his character will be the real villain of the revival or at the very least his presence will eclipse Richard Casablancas Sr., even though Casablancas is the character more familiar to the series’ original fans. Since the revival will be a mystery neo-noir series like the first Veronica Mars there is very little known about the plot. However it has been revealed that it’ll focus on a series of murders of students who take their wild spring break in Veronica Mars’ central city of Neptune, California.
It would be a little rote for the most recognizable actor (Simmons) to be the murderer of the Veronica Mars revival. However, Clyde and Simmons will undoubtedly play a part in the revival’s story. Although the main thrust of the new series will be the spring break murders it’s also been teased that Veronica Mars will continue to explore the class rivalry between the average citizens of Neptune and the wealthy elite. Since the Casablanacas family were a staple of Neptune’s wealth and status that makes Clyde, by extension, part of the extreme class divide.
While there are only 8 episodes planned for Veronica Mars on Hulu it is possible that there could be more seasons in the future. If there are more stories to tell with Veronica Mars, Simmons’ role could continue far beyond this revival. Clyde could turn into a multi-season Big Bad that could cause a headache for Veronica and Neptune’s citizens for years.
More: Hulu’s Veronica Mars Revival Confirmed, Old Episodes To Stream Summer 2019
Source: THR
