Who's your daddy?! It's impossible to envision Veronica Mars without Enrico Colantoni and his character Keith Mars. Unlike some teen dramas, which feature parents as little more than background props or devices used to set some general boundaries for the teen characters' lives, Keith Mars was a major influence in Veronica's life and their relationship was a piece of the heart of the story. Keith Mars is a man who would literally jump through fire for his daughter, and so much about who Veronica is as a private eye and as a person can likely be attributed to his influence. And that's a good thing!
What's also a good thing is that, as you may have surmised from the video above, Colantino has been confirmed for the Veronica Mars movie. Fans may have been expecting as much, but it's official now. Rob Thomas confirmed it this week on the Kickstarter page, stating that - added to Kristen Bell, Jason Dohring and the backer who won the waiter role - there are now four people officially on board to star in this movie. Hopefully there will be more good news to come (news that includes names like Capra, Hansen, Majorino, Marino, Norris and Daggs, preferably…).
Since playing private detective and sometimes-sheriff on Veronica Mars, Colantoni starred in Flashpoint and more recently appeared in Person of Interest. And prior to Veronica Mars, he starred in Just Shoot Me, along with playing Mathesar in Galaxy Quest. Colantoni's one of those great actors who can play serious as well as he can play funny, which is one of the reasons he was so great as Keith Mars. The dynamic of his character's relationship with Veronica was layered beautifully. They had some very amusing moments over the course of the series' three-season run, but they also had some very touching ones. And though they were sometimes a crime-solving, case-cracking team, they were also very clearly father and daughter, though Keith occasionally had to step in and re-draw that line when Veronica needed to be reined in. It's great to know he'll be a part of the movie… and not as a ghost.
"Tonight we eat like the lower middle class to which we aspire. Fire up the hibachi!"
