JK Simmons Joins 'Veronica Mars' Revival as Ex-Con Working for Richard Casablancas

J.K. Simmons has joined Hulu’s “Veronica Mars” revival, and he’s working for Ryan Hansen’s on-screen dad, Richard Casablancas (David Starzyk), an individual with knowledge of the casting tells TheWrap.

Simmons has been cast in the eight-episode limited series as Clyde Prickett, an ex-con who served 10 years for racketeering, and was smart enough to be the first guy in Chino to offer protection to Neptune’s richest real estate developer, Big Dick Casablancas (father to Hansen’s young Dick Casablancas), on Big Dick’s first day in prison. Now a free man, Clyde works as Big Dick’s fixer. He’s the smarter and more dangerous of the pair and has a network of fellow ex-cons he can count on to keep his own hands clean.

Leading lady Kristen Bell and series creator Rob Thomas — along with a slew of other “Veronica Mars” alums — are returning for the streamer’s eight-episode run. Starzyk, Hansen, Jason Dohring (Logan), Francis Capra (Weevil), Percy Daggs III (Wallace), Max Greenfield (Leo D’Amato) and Enrico Colantoni (Veronica’s father, Keith Mars) — all regular and recurring cast members from the original series — were previously confirmed for the revival.

Also Read: 'Veronica Mars:' Max Greenfield to Return for Hulu Revival, Patton Oswalt to Recur

Simmons joins fellow series newcomers Patton Oswalt, Kirby Howell-Baptiste and Dawnn Lewis.

Here is the official logline for the project: Spring breakers are getting murdered in Neptune, thereby decimating the seaside town’s lifeblood tourist industry. After Mars Investigations is hired by the parents of one of the victims to find their son’s killer, Veronica is drawn into an epic eight-episode mystery that pits the enclave’s wealthy elites, who would rather put an end to the month-long bacchanalia, against a working class that relies on the cash influx that comes with being the West Coast’s answer to Daytona Beach.

As part of the revival deal, Hulu has also struck an agreement with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution for streaming rights to all past episodes of the original “Veronica Mars,” including the 2014 feature film. All will be available in 2019.

Also Read: Ryan Hansen to Return for Hulu's 'Veronica Mars' Revival

“Veronica Mars” debuted in 2004 and ran for two seasons on UPN, jumping to The CW for one season before getting canceled. Bell starred as the titular spy on the original series, which followed a California teen sleuth and student who led a second life as a private investigator under the guidance of her detective father.

The revival hails from Spondoolie Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. Along with Thomas, Diane Ruggiero-Wright and Dan Etheridge will serve as executive producers.

Read everything we currently know about the “Veronica Mars” revival here.

22 TV Shows That Found New Homes After Cancellation, From 'Lucifer' to 'Magnum P.I.' (Photos)

One man's trash is another man's treasure. OK, no show wants to be called "trash," but if it means you're getting picked up by another network or platform after cancellation at your original home, you probably won't mind it too much.
Netflix
"One Day at a Time" -- The sitcom revival ran for three seasons on Netflix from 2017 to 2019 before being canceled in March 2019. Pop TV then picked up "One Day at a Time" for a fourth season, which began airing last year. The cable channel canceled the series in November.

Netflix
"Brooklyn Nine-Nine" -- The Andy Samberg comedy ran from 2013 to 2018 on Fox and was picked up for a sixth season by NBC one day after being canceled by its original network. The show's seventh season aired in 2020, and the eighth and final season will premiere this summer.
Universal
"Designated Survivor" -- The Kiefer Sutherland drama ran for two seasons from 2016 to 2018 on ABC. The series was picked up by Netflix for a third season, which ran in 2019. The show then got canceled again.
ABC
"Lucifer" -- The drama ran for three seasons on Fox, from 2015 to 2018, and was picked up by Netflix for a fourth season in June 2018. Season 4 launched on the streaming service in 2019, while the first half of its fifth season premiered last August and the second half at the end of May. Netflix still has the sixth and final season left to debut.
Fox
"Nashville" -- The country music drama aired from 2012 to 2016 on ABC, then got picked up by CMT for two more seasons from 2016 to 2018.
CMT
"Cougar Town" -- Ran on ABC from 2009 to 2012, then on TBS from 2013 to 2015.
TBS
"Arrested Development" -- The comedy aired on Fox from 2003 to 2006 and then moved to Netflix in 2013 for a fourth season. A fifth season rolled out in 2019.
Netflix
"The Expanse" -- The sci-fi series aired from 2015 to 2018 on Syfy and was canceled before being picked up by Amazon Prime Video for two more seasons. Ahead of the fifth season's December 2020 premiere, the streaming service ordered a sixth and final season.
Syfy
"Futurama" -- The animated comedy ran on Fox from 1999 to 2003, then moved to Comedy Central from 2008 to 2013.
Fox
"Gilmore Girls" -- The dramedy aired from 2000 to 2007 on The WB, which became The CW in the show's final season. It was revived by Netflix in 2016 for a special four-episode miniseries, "Year in the Life."
Warner Bros
"Community" -- The sitcom ran on NBC from 2009 to 2014 and aired its sixth and final season on Yahoo! Screen in 2015.
Sony
"Scrubs" -- The hospital-set sitcom aired seven seasons on NBC from 2001 to 2008, then moved to ABC for two more seasons.
ABC
"The Mindy Project" -- Mindy Kaling's comedy ran on Fox from 2012 to 2015, then moved to Hulu from 2015 to 2017.
Hulu
"Diff'rent Strokes" -- The classic comedy started its long run on NBC from 1978 to 1985, then moved to ABC from 1985 to 1986.
NBC
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" -- The cult classic aired from 1997 to 2001 on The WB before moving to UPN for its final two seasons, which aired from 2001 to 2003.
20th Century Fox
"Roswell" -- The sci-fi teen drama first ran on the WB from 1999 to 2001, then moved to UPN from 2001 to 2002. (A reboot, titled "Roswell, New Mexico," premiered on The CW in 2018.)
20th Century Fox
"Veronica Mars" -- The Kristen Bell show ran on UPN from 2004 to 2006, then moved to The CW for a final season from 2006 to 2007. And then Hulu released a revival in 2019.
Warner Bros
“Stargate SG-1” -- The sci-fi series started on Showtime from 1997 to 2002, then moved to Sci Fi (later Syfy) from 2002 to 2007.
Showtime
"Project Runway" -- The fashion competition series first ran on Bravo from 2004 to 2008, then moved to Lifetime from 2009 to 2018, and then returned to Bravo in 2019 for a new season with Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn replaced by Karlie Kloss and Christian Siriano.
Lifetime
"JAG" -- The procedural ran for one season from 1995 to 1996 on NBC, before CBS picked it up from 1997 to 2005.
CBS
"Last Man Standing" -- The Tim Allen sitcom ran for six seasons from 2011-2017 on ABC, then got picked up by Fox in 2018 and aired Seasons 7 and 8 on its new network. The show's ninth and final season concluded on Fox in 2021.
Fox
"Magnum P.I." -- The reboot of the Hawaii-set crime procedural ran for four seasons with Jay Hernandez taking on the title role held by Tom Selleck in the 1980s. But after CBS canceled the show in 2022, NBC picked it up for at least 20 more episodes.
CBS

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TheWrap rounds up more crews who have been saved

One man's trash is another man's treasure. OK, no show wants to be called "trash," but if it means you're getting picked up by another network or platform after cancellation at your original home, you probably won't mind it too much.

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22 TV Shows That Found New Homes After Cancellation, From 'Lucifer' to 'Magnum P.I.' (Photos)

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