In the Not-Too-Distant Future: The RiffTrax Team Returns to MST3K
- Antal Bokor
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
In the not-too-distant future, we will be getting more Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) in a way I would not have thought possible a few years ago. If you haven’t kept up with the Satellite of Love, the franchise has seen major activity in the last decade. In 2017, original creator Joel Hodgson launched a record-breaking Kickstarter to bring the show to Netflix for two seasons, hosted by Jonah Ray. Later, in 2022, the show moved to its own independent streaming platform, The Gizmoplex, for Season 13. This era introduced a second host, Emily Marsh, and experimented with a "shared universe" of test subjects, proving that the concept could survive beyond any single host.
But now, the "classic era" team is finally returning to the format they helped define. Mike Nelson (Michael J. Nelson) is back in the jumpsuit, joined by the longest-running Tom Servo (Kevin Murphy) and Crow T. Robot (Bill Corbett). If you weren’t aware, this trio has been riffing together for years under the RiffTrax banner—they even released their own video game, RiffTrax: The Game, in 2022. While RiffTrax has kept the spirit alive through audio commentaries and live shows, they have largely operated without the puppets or the silhouettes due to rights issues.
That changed last month. After attempting to restart the MST3K franchise independently with varying degrees of success, original creator Joel Hodgson sold his stake in MST3K to Shout! Studios. This deal paved the way for Shout! Studios and RiffTrax to officially collaborate. No fear for Joel fans, however, as he will remain attached as a consultant.
As of today, February 2, 2026, Shout! Studios and RiffTrax have launched a Kickstarter to fund four new episodes titled MST3K: The RiffTrax Experiments. These will be classic-style episodes, complete with skits, the hallway doors, and—most importantly—the return of "Shadowrama," putting Mike and the bots back in the theater seats visually for the first time since 1999.
The fan base is definitely on board. The project has already blown past its modest $20,000 goal—a low bar likely set to ensure the project funds immediately—and currently sits at over $750,000 and rising fast as I write this. For fans who grew up on the Sci-Fi Channel era of the show, this collaboration is nothing short of a dream come true.