Wednesday, 22 July 2009 00:00

News

Where can you find 600 Captain Kirks, 450 Spider Men, 300 Wonder Women, thousands of Han Solos, Princess Leias, Luke Skywalkers, and even a toaster that burns the image of Darth Vader’s helmet into your toast? At San Diego’s Comic-Con 2009, of course. The event will be held at the San Diego Convention Center and will begin on July 23rd.

Of particular interest to San Diegans is a roundtable discussion with former Veronica Mars star Kristen Bell. Veronica Mars was filmed in and around San Diego from 2004 - 2007 in association with local companies including Stu Segall Productions and Shamon Freitas Talent Agency.

Comic-Con is the world’s premier comics and popular arts convention, complete with special guests, themes and anniversaries, and comic-related programming. It is the biggest American entertainment marketing festival of the year.

Founded in 1970, Comic-Con now attracts more than 125,000 fans. This year, all four-day festival passes and one-day passes have been sold out. The event is so large that the convention center has put forward an expansion plan—largely in an effort to keep the Comic-Con in San Diego.

Originally showcasing comic books, science fiction/fantasy, film/television and related popular arts, the convention has expanded over the years to include a larger range of pop culture elements, such as horror, anime, manga, animation, toys, collectible card games, video games, webcomics, and fantasy novels.

Spotting celebrities at Comic-Con is easier than fooling a storm trooper using the Jedi Mind Trick. Celebrities rumored or confirmed to appear include: Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Jon Favreau, Guy Ritchie, John Lasseter, Robert Zemeckis, Tim Burton, Lucy Lawless and David Tennant, among other notable actors, directors, animators and artists.

Some highlights of this year’s Comic Con include the following:

• Entertainment Weekly will moderate a conversation with Sigourney Weaver (Avatar), Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost), Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars), and other stars about the actresses who have redefined the rules and the female characters that have shattered the glass ceiling for all women.

• The latest news, announcements and rumors pertaining to the Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro production of The Hobbit, set to hit the big screen in December 2011.

• The Middleman cast reunion with an exclusive table read of the lost 13th episode, which was never produced for television.

• Battlestar retrospective, which provides a review, discussion and Q&A of Battlestar's past four seasons and dramatic ending.

• Cast and creative team of the USA hit series Psych provide an all-access behind-the-scenes pass, including sharing personal stories, video presentations, never-before-seen outtakes, and a Q&A.

• A revealing interview and Q&A session with the stars and executive producers of Dexter. Plus, get an exclusive first look at clips from the new season.

• A sneak peek at the highly anticipated second season of the action-adventure series Legend of the Seeker from executive producers Ken Biller (Star Trek: Voyager), Sam Raimi (Spider-Man), Rob Tapert (Xena), Ned Nalle (Hercules), and Josh Donen (Drag Me to Hell) and starring Craig Horner, Bridget Regan and Bruce Spence.

• The future of the Halo franchise with development director Frank O'Connor.

Comic-Con 2009’s celebration of animation will pay particular focus to the following special themes and anniversaries:
• 75th Anniversary of the Great Adventure Comic Strips
• 50th Anniversary of the Green Lantern
• 50th Anniversary of Rocky and Bullwinkle
• 25th Anniversary of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
• 25th Anniversary of Usagi Yojimbo

More information about Comic-Con 2009 is available here.

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