Joel Hodgson launches new Mystery Science Theater 3000 Kickstarter for more episodes

Judy Moreno

After having one of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns for a television show ever, cult series Mystery Science Theater 3000 made a triumphant return in 2017 on Netflix where it ran for two very good new seasons -- with a new cast that included Jonah Ray and Patton Oswalt -- before before getting canceled once again.

Creator Joel Hodgson isn't through with MST3K yet, though, and has just launched the #MakeMoreMST3K Kickstarter. As he tells AV Club, this time they plan on eliminating the middleman and creating their own streaming platform to be called The Gizmoplex to deliver new episodes directly to fans. Hodgson says that if they meet their $5.5 million goal they'll have the budget for 12 new episodes and 12 new shorts. They've already raised over $750,000 as of this posting.

Hodgson says they will not use the Netflix model of dropping the whole season at once to binge, with more interactive elements as well. “You get tickets to every show and they premiere,” Hodgson tells AV Club. “There’s a point where [the audience] can all be there right at the beginning of it. There’ll be a way to discuss it, too—chat and stuff, while you watch stuff.” He also says that The Gizmoplex is not just some generic streaming hub, it's conceptualized as a movie theater run by the show's mad scientists Felicia Day and Patton Oswalt, with specially curated programming. “It reminds me a little bit of SCTV where The Mads are falling all over each other, trying to do new things in the Gizmoplex in the hopes of making more money. [SCTV] did that so well where, behind the scenes, they’d be planning something and then you’d see it realized on the show, and that was always so fun.”

In the Kickstarter video, Joel says new episodes could air as soon as this fall if fundraising goals are met. You can contribute to the #MakeMoreMST3K Kickstarter here.