‘Veronica Mars’ Is on the Case in the First Poster Reveal

Okay, all you Marshmallows* out there — get ready for your favorite post of the week.

Pop culture's other great sleuth is getting her own movie, and we've got the first look at the poster. Not surprisingly, the artwork for "Veronica Mars" puts the eponymous lady detective (Kristen Bell) and her trusty camera front and center — older, wiser, and probably in no less need of a long vacation. We also get a good look at the photos she's taking to help her solve the case.

Kristen Bell stars in 'Veronica Mars'
Kristen Bell stars in 'Veronica Mars'

Our poster caps off a busy couple of weeks for the film — a Mars-athon, if you will. First the trailer dropped with a bang. Then "Veronica Mars" gets named the Breakthrough: Film at the 2014 CES convention. And yesterday we found out the film is set to premiere at SXSW, which is pretty much the perfect spot, as far as director Rob Thomas is concerned.

"Austin is my home town, so I'm thrilled that the first place the movie will be screened is at SXSW. I played the festival in its first couple of years when mediocre local bands like mine could still get booked in it. It's nice to be going back 20 years later doing something in which my lack of musicianship will be less of a hindrance," Thomas tells us via email.

[Related: 'Veronica Mars' Trailer Decoded: Highlights and GIFs]

"Veronica Mars" is based on the television series that ran for three seasons on UPN and the CW from 2004 through 2007 (all of which can be viewed on Amazon Prime). Created by Rob Thomas, the show focuses on a young student who progresses from high school to college as she moonlights as a private investigator, solving various mysteries in and around the fictional town of Neptune, California. In the tradition of old-school film noir, the show incorporated voiceover narration, snappy dialogue, stylized lighting, and a formidable line-up of cool cats, dangerous dames, and no-goodniks.

In the film, Veronica has retired from being a P.I. and is about to graduate from law school when she finds herself back in Neptune upon her ex-boyfriend Logan (Jason Dohring) being accused of murder, a case that plunges her into her old life of searching for clues, evaluating evidence, questioning suspects and, of course, putting her life in grave danger.

"Veronica Mars" brings back much of the series' original cast, including Chris Lowell (Stosh 'Piz' Piznarski), Ryan Hansen (Dick Casablancas), Krysten Ritter (Gia Goodman), Percy Daggs III (Wallace Fennel), Tina Majorino (Cindy 'Mac' Mackenzie), Francis Capra (Eli 'Weevil' Navarro), Ken Marino (Vinnie Van Lowe) and Enrico Colantoni (Keith Mars). Andrea Estella is filling in for Leighton Meester as Carrie Bishop, with both Justin Long and James Franco rumored to be making cameo appearances.

All of this was made possible by the film's astonishingly successful Kickstarter campaign. Launched by Thomas and Bell on March 13, 2013, the 31-day campaign reached its goal of $2 million in just under ten hours and raised a total of $5.7 million, making it the number-one funded film project on the site and the third-highest funded project in Kickstarter history.

Never underestimate the enthusiasm — and deep pockets — of the Marshmallows*.

"Veronica Mars" will hit theaters on March 14.

*The nickname given to fans of "Veronica Mars," as it's a term used a few times in the series to describe the hard-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside lady detective herself.

See Kristen Bell in the theatrical trailer for "Veronica Mars":