Veronica Mars movie set for March release after being crowdfunded via record-breaking 'Kickstarter' campaign

The popular US detective series is set to hit cinema screens after an unprecedented fundraising strategy

'Veronica Mars' will hit the silver screen in March

A film adaptation of American TV series "Veronica Mars" will be released in the UK in March, following on from the most successful Kickstarter campaign ever.

The TV series, which aired between 2004 and 2007, saw "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" star Kristen Bell play teenage private investigator Veronica Mars, who follows in the footsteps of her father - a former police detective - to solve various crimes.

In the film feature, Veronica is lured back into the private investigatory work, returning to her hometown in California to help her ex-boyfriend Logan Echolls, who becomes involved in a murder investigation. Renowned Hollywood stars such as Jamie Lee Curtis and James Franco are also rumoured to be appearing in the film.

But the film might not have been produced if it wasn't for the thousands of Veronica Mars fans.

The director of the series, Rob Thomas, had written a script but was forced to look for this unusual source of funding after Warner Bros opted not back the production of the film.

He set up the Kickstarter campaign in March last year, asking fans of the show to contribute towards the funding for the movie. It was an instant hit, attracting funding of $2 million in the space of 10 hours. Production began in June, with the donations still arriving.

By the end of the month-long campaign, that figure had risen to $5.7m, with a total of 91,000 supporters, making it the biggest campaign on Kickstarter to date. As a way of expressing their gratitude, the Kickstarter page promised to hand out a sheet of exclusive Veronica Mars stickers to those who donated $10 or more.

Thomas said: "I was totally taken off guard by the amount of international support we received during out Kickstarter drive. A movie of this scope wouldn't have been possible without our international fans. I'm incredibly excited that fans around the world will be able to see the movie on the same day that it's released here in the U.S.”

'Veronica Mars' will be out in UK cinemas from 14 March.