‘Futurama,’ ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians,’ ‘Scott Pilgrim Takes Off’ and Blumhouse Heading to New York Comic Con
Blumhouse, Futurama, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Archer, Shining Vale, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off and a new Goosebumps series are among the panels, screenings and exclusive first looks set for this year’s New York Comic Con.
On Thursday, ReedPop announced its initial programming slate for the 2023 edition of the annual pop culture convention, taking place at the Javits Center Oct. 12-15. It’s the first major schedule announcement for the fall con, which, like its convention predecessors this year, is navigating the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes against the AMPTP that limits talents ability to promote their work.
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TV and film programming includes a Thursday Empire Stage panel dedicated exclusively to Blumhouse, with producer Jason Blum sharing exclusive details about Five Nights at Freddys, Night Swim and Totally Killer. Kingsman: The Secret Service and Stardust filmmaker Matthew Vaughn will appear on the same stage for a Saturday panel that goes behind the curtain of Kick-Ass, The Kingsman movies, X-Men: First Class and more ahead of his upcoming spy thriller Argylle.
There’ a season two premiere screening and panel on Friday, Oct. 13 with the unannounced cast and creatives behind Starz’s horror-comedy Shining Vale; an exclusive screening of an episode from the current season of USA and Syfy’s Chucky that same day at the Empire Stage; and a first look at Lionsgate’s upcoming The Strangers horror trilogy with director Renny Harlin and producer Courtney Solomon on Saturday, Oct. 14.
A “Designing Worlds of Horror in Scream, Insidious and More” panel, featuring costume designers behind Scream VI, Insidious: The Red Door, The Walking Dead and Twisted Metal, alongside the production designer for Mike Flanagan’s The Fall of the House of Usher, is set for Friday.
Disney+ has an entire line-up of kid-friendly fare, including a Sunday, Oct. 15 sneak peek at the highly anticipated Percy Jackson and the Olympians series based on the best-selling book series by award-winning author Rick Riordan on the Empire stage. The streamer will also host a first look at its new 10-part Goosebumps series inspired by the R.L. Stine universe on Friday at the Main Stage, as well as a sneak peek screening of Monsters at Work‘s season two premiere on Sunday.
Those eager to re-enter the Scott Pilgrim universe with Bryan Lee O’Malley and BenDavid Grabinski’s anime spin on the franchise, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, can join the duo for a Q&A and sneak peek at the Netflix series on Saturday, while fans of the critically acclaimed return of Futurama can head to the Main Stage on Thursday, Oct. 12 for a season 11 finale screening, season 12 sneak peek and panel featuring creatives behind the beloved sci-fi animated Hulu show.
A dual Fox Main Stage panel on Saturday will feature the Dan Harmon-created, Hannah Waddingham and Richard Ayoade voice starring Krapopolis, alongside a first major look at the Jon Hamm-led and executive-produced Grimsburg animated comedy set to debut 2024. Max will host a debut episode screening and conversation with co-creator Joe Bennett and the Green Street Productions animators behind the sci-fi, adventure drama Scavengers Reign on Thursday. A Friday Main Stage screening of Archer amid its final season will include never-before-seen footage, an NYCC-exclusive giveaway and a special announcement.
On the comics side of programming, the convention will host a conversation Friday between Eisner-nominated comic creator Steve Orlando and Nobel Peace Prize nominee chef José Andrés about their upcoming graphic novel Feeding Dangerously, which follows Andrés and his non-profit World Central Kitchen.
As part of the strikes, WGA and SAG-AFTRA members can attend a comic convention or pop culture expo as an individual but are prohibited from appearing to promote past, present or future work tied to their contracts under negotiations with AMPTP studios. It’s not clear whether writers and performers will still be on strike during the October event, but like with any convention, guest availability — which also includes notable exhibitors, authors, comics creators, cosplayers, wrestlers and more — can change.
The first wave of NYCC announcements is heavy on animation, comics events and screenings, a schedule that resembles much of this year’s San Diego Comic-Con offerings. Held in July, SDCC was one of the first major entertainment events impacted by the historic double strike after the AMPTP’s negotiations with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA failed to secure new contracts by their respective deadlines.
In June, Marvel Studios pulled its planned SDCC programming — a favorite of Saturday Hall-H attendees — from the event, nearly two months into the WGA strike and ahead of the performers strike in a move that was matched by parent company Disney, as well as Netflix, Sony, Universal, HBO and others. The schedule would be altered even further when, on July 14 (a week before SDCC kicked off), the SAG strike was called.
With New York Comic Con, the talent lineup appears to be slightly larger, with a number of notable names set for guest appearances. Among those previously announced for career spotlight panels, photo-ops or autograph signings are Chris Evans, Ewan McGregor, David Tennant, Jodie Whittaker, Susan Sarandon, Tim Curry, Karen Gillan, Michael Rooker, Pom Klementieff, Sean Gunn, Will Poulter, Ron Pearlman, Zachery Levi, John Carpenter, Diane Guerrero, Michelle Gomez, Shameik Moore, Rhys Darby and Kathy Najimy.
Additional programming for New York Comic Con 2023 will be released in the coming weeks.
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