The last time Veronica Mars was properly airing on our TV screens, it was May 2007, and Hulu was still five months away from being founded. (And somehow, The Big Bang Theory hadn't yet premiered on CBS.) Skip ahead twelve years, and Hulu is now the new home for Rob Thomas and Kristen Bell's mystery dramedy. But just because Veronica and many within the Marshmallow fanbase are all grown adults now, don't expect to hear adult language such as random F-bombs.
That's bad news for anyone hoping to see Veronica Mars tell Ken Marino's Vinnie Van Lowe to go fuck himself, but show creator Rob Thomas explained why he can bet behind Hulu's decision to pull back on that most tantalizing four-letter word. According to Thomas:
I actually understand Hulu’s decision. They bought [streaming rights] to all three seasons of Veronica Mars. And because those three seasons are built to appeal to younger people, they want them to be able to watch the first three seasons [seamlessly] with Season 4. That was their thinking on it.
That definitely makes a lot of sense, all things considered. While financial stats weren't revealed by way of how much it cost Hulu to score the Season 1-3 streaming rights to Veronica Mars, it wouldn't be the smartest move to try and hook a younger audience with those early episodes only to then create harder-edged content geared for older viewers. (Not that high-schoolers and the like aren't dropping F-bombs on a daily basis, but for the sake of TV ratings.)
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Of course, considering the season is about a bomber targeting Neptune's spring break crowd, one wonders if Kristen Bell saying "fuck" is what really deserved the most pushback for its influential nature. Anything that Ryan Hansen's Dick Casablancas gets up to also deserves to be considered.
Kristen Bell did tell TVLine that Rob Thomas came up with an "incredibly funny scenario" that gives Veronica and Keith the chance to dance around spouting F-bombs left and right. (Having seen the entirety of Season 4, I can vouch for there being a no-fucks gimmick used, though it ends up being hit-or-miss in the humor department.) Plus, the eight-episode season does allow characters to use other explicit language when the time calls for it.
Fans of Kristen Bell will note that Veronica Mars isn't exactly the only current TV series that doesn't allow her to rain F-bombs down on adoring audiences. Her time on NBC's The Good Place, whose heavenly aesthetic turns foul language into edited nonsense, has been peppered with highly amusing phrasings like "Holy shirtballs!" and "What the fork?" Although they'll sadly be coming to an end when The Good Place bows out with Season 4.
For what it's worth, the actress wants everyone to know that she's not the cause of all this language censorship in her career. Here's how Kristen Bell put it:
No one who hires me wants me to swear. And I’m like, ‘Fuck that.’ I have no problem with cursing. I know some people don’t care for it — like my mom — and I fully respect that. But, personally, it only offends you if you let it.
A lot of people are likely going to be screaming curse words at their TVs when Veronica Mars Season 4 comes to a close on Hulu, considering it took twelve years and a crowd-funded feature film to make it happen. But hey, if enough people tune in and Hulu sees a wealth of new subscribers wanting to see Keith and Veronica back together again, then Kristen Bell will likely come back for more, assuming Rob Thomas and others are also down to keep things going with Season 5.
Check out the official trailer for Season 4 below.
With many returning faces on hand – not to mention a few new ones – Veronica Mars Season 4 will debut on Hulu on Friday, July 26, at 12:01 a.m. PT. Tell all your friends to not be a bunch of fork-heads and to be sure and tune in.
