George Lucas, who is credited with starting a significant period of pop culture almost fifty years ago, will make his first visit at Comic-Con on Sunday to give a sneak peek at his much anticipated Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles.
At 11 a.m., the 81-year-old legend will be joined in Hall H by art director Doug Chiang and renowned filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro for a panel discussion led by Queen Latifah.
According to organizers, Academy Award winners Del Toro and Chiang will join Lucas to discuss the impact of visual storytelling and provide a preview of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.
The museum, which he co-founded with his wife, businesswoman Mellody Hobson, is set to open in 2026. Construction began in March 2018 and will be located next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Its goal is to unravel the richness and complexity of visual narrative by fusing mass-produced images with artistic disciplines with academic roots.
The museum will showcase pieces by artists such as Norman Rockwell, Kadir Nelson, Jessie Willcox Smith, N. C. Wyeth, Beatrix Potter, Judy Baca, Frida Kahlo, and Maxfield Parrish; photographers Gordon Parks, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Dorothea Lange; and comic art icons Winsor McCay, Jack Kirby, Frank Frazetta, Alison Bechdel, Chris Ware, and R. Crumb.
David Glanzer, the event spokesperson, said, “We are incredibly excited to welcome George Lucas to Comic-Con for the first time.”
Star Wars made one of its first public appearances at our conference almost fifty years ago. As a promotional item, the convention featured a booth with Howard Chaykin’s now-famous Star Wars poster.
It is truly a full circle event to have Mr. Lucas return this time [in person] to open the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. His lifelong commitment to world-building and visual storytelling strikes a deep chord with us and our community, and the museum’s goal of showcasing narrative art in all its forms is a natural fit with what Comic-Con has stood for since its inception.
Speaking of Star Wars, Sunday’s ECHOES from the Galaxy live and online auction at Balboa Park’s Comic-Con Museum will finally give Force enthusiasts access to the newest collection of treasures.
Constructed by a team of top collectors, the Julien’s Auctions-Turner Classic Movies offers conclude a two-week show that began on July 14 at the museum.
Among the highlights are:
- A New Hope screen-used Stormtrooper helmet exhibited at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library s 2024 exhibition Defending America and the Galaxy: Star Wars and SDI, and believed to be featured in scenes on Tatooine as a Sandtrooper helmet, contact says;
- Original production-used Death Star surface pieces including a hand- painted two-sided cardboard tower ;
- Star Wars: The Phantom Menace lightsaber props from Ewan McGregor, Liam Neeson and Ray Park ( Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, and Darth Maul, respectively); and
- Mark Hamill s ( Luke Skywalker ) Return of the Jedi production-made lightsaber.
- An original prop hand worn by Anthony Daniels as C-3PO in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back ($30,000 * $35,000).
- Six prototype heads for an unproduced Yoda toy by Kenner in 1981 for Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back ($35,000 * $40,000).
- An original Signature Edition studio scale Master Replicas Millennium Falcon model, released and featuring a hand-signed and numbered plaque from Harrison Ford
A percentage of sales will be used to further the ongoing goals of the Comic-Con Museum.
Defying Gravity: Exploring the STEM and Ethics of Magic in Wicked, the San Diego International Children’s Film Festival, and an interview with George Takei of Star Trek fame are some of the other events taking place within the convention center.
What is the position of creators, voice actors, and artists in light of the growing use of artificial intelligence? That is the main topic of the National Association of Voice Actors’ Creators in the Age of AI panel, which will take place at the Omni Grand Ballroom at 4 p.m.
Tim Friedlander, president and co-founder of NAVA, who will be on the panel, stated that we are at a pivotal point in the development of AI where voice actors must actively seek out frameworks that guarantee the equitable treatment of artists, comprehend the ramifications, and interact.
This is about bringing the industry together to listen, work together, and advance in a way that benefits everyone.
The evening will conclude with filmmaker Kevin Smith commemorating the 25th anniversary of Dogma and the 30th anniversary of Mallrats at the largest venue in the San Diego Convention Center. Not-so-Silent Bob will talk about his upcoming film and new comics that he is releasing.
With significant announcements on Coyote vs. Acme, Family Guy, Project Hail Mary, and Star Trek: Star Fleet Academy, among other titles, fans had a full day of panel activity on Saturday.
Will Forte, the film’s lead, said during a panel on Saturday that Coyote vs. Acme will have a worldwide release date of August 26, 2026. The session also featured footage of the Warner Bros. film, a live-action animated legal comedy based on the iconic Road Runner cartoons.
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During a panel, the creators of the well-known animated series Bob’s Burgers on Fox announced that the show will be honoring its 300th episode with a number of special episodes that will go back to the Belchers restaurant’s inception.
A trailer for Star Trek: Star Fleet Academy, which will debut on Paramount+ early next year, was also shown to fans on Saturday. A class of cadets in San Francisco preparing for their first space journey is portrayed by the new show’s mostly Gen Z ensemble. The ensemble will be led by Holly Hunter and Paul Giamatti, but the younger characters will be the main focus. Actors Sandro Rosta, Kerrice Brooks, Bella Shepard, George Hawkins, Karim Dian, and Zoe Steiner will also appear in the show.
In other news, 6,500 people watched the fourth episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on Saturday in Hall H.
The historical murder mystery episode, A Spaced Adventure Hour, will premiere on Paramount+ the following week.
Prior to the start of the 24th season of Family Guy on Fox in 2026, producers revealed two new Christmas specials that will only be available on Hulu. A Little Fright Music, the Halloween special, will debut on October 6. No date or more information has been revealed for the second special.
A sneak peek at Season 37 of The Simpsons and a teaser of Abbott Elementary’s Season 5, starring Quinta Brunson and Tyler James Williams, were also part of Saturday’s early action.
Albert Brooks, Kieran Culkin, Cole Escola, and Glenn Howerton are among the anticipated guests for the upcoming season of The Simpsons, according to the show’s producers.
Michael Keaton, Idris Elba, and Viola Davis will all appear in the venerable show’s Halloween special.
Other significant occurrences James Gunn of DC Comics, along with stars John Cena, Jennifer Holland, Freddie Stroma, Steve Agee, Frank Grillo, Sol Rodriguez, and Tim Meadows, participated in a Peacemaker panel in Hall H on Saturday.
Ryan Gosling and author Andy Weir were among the members of the Project Hail Mary crew that participated in a panel discussion about the upcoming science fiction movie and its relationships. The event included a number of movie snippets, some of which made the crowd chuckle. The film is scheduled for release in March of next year.
Gosling plays a middle school teacher who is sent into space to save humanity at the center of the story. The movie also features actresses Milana Vayntrub and Sandra Hller.
Tens of thousands of people have attended Comic-Con 2025 since it opened on Thursday, and it is anticipated to bring in over $160 million for the local economy. This covers both direct and indirect visitor spending. The mayor’s administration reports that attendees alone usually spend $96.8 million immediately.
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Comic-Con has been hosted in San Diego almost annually since 1970, and the event organizers have decided to remain there until 2027. According to official records, Comic-Con brought in over 135,000 visitors in 2022 and brought around $3 million for the city in hotel and sales tax income.
During the two years that the convention was closed due to the coronavirus epidemic, Comic-Con International was provided more than $2.5 million in loans from the Payment Protection Plan, all of which have since been forgiven.
With over 1,000 exhibitors annually and more than 460,000 square feet of exhibit floor area, Comic-Con is the biggest comic book and popular arts exposition in the world. The conference also includes over 2,000 hours of panels, workshops, and events, in addition to dozens of pop-ups and activities outside the conference Center.
