Comic-Con 2025 Launches with Star Wars Legends and Sci-Fi Premieres

Comic-Con made its official debut in San Diego on Tuesday, and tens of thousands of pop culture fans are expected to descend on the city this week for the biggest fan event of the year. But there’s one presence at this year’s convention in particular that has longtime Comic-Con goers very excited: Legendary filmmaker George Lucas will be at Comic-Con for the first time.

Lucas’s two most famous franchises, “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones,” have had a relationship with Comic-Con going back decades. Both of those series have their roots in the nerd subculture that gave rise to Comic-Con, and they have been crucial to the evolution of the convention into the pop culture behemoth that it is today. But up until now, Lucas has never been on the guest list at Comic-Con.

This year’s convention is a major full-circle moment for Lucas and Comic-Con. David Glanzer, Chief Communications and Strategy Officer, pointed out that “nearly 50 years ago, Star Wars made one of its earliest public appearances at our convention, and one of the prizes in a booth we had was [comic book artist] Howard Chaykin’s now legendary Star Wars poster as a promotional giveaway.” He referred to Lucas attending Comic-Con as a “true full-circle moment.”

Lucas will be appearing at a Sunday panel about his upcoming Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, moderated by Queen Latifah. The museum will open in Los Angeles next year, and Lucas, Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, and Oscar-winning artist Doug Chiang, whose work has helped to shape Star Wars for multiple generations, will be on the panel. The museum will focus on the art of illustrated storytelling and how that plays out in film, comics, and concept art. Lucas will also have an archive at the museum, which will include a significant portion of his collection.

Comic-Con Has Gone From Strength to Strength for Decades

Comic-Con started small in San Diego in 1970. It began as a convention for comic book fans and has ballooned over the decades into one of the biggest celebrations of storytelling, film, and fandom on the planet. Now Comic-Con pulls in about 130,000 fans each year. Cosplayers come for the costumes, collectors for the action figures, and everyone for the chance to see a sneak peek, a panel, or a world premiere of a blockbuster project.

Alien and Predator Return

Arguably, the biggest panel and debut of the convention this year will be the world premiere of a new series called “Alien: Earth.” It’s a prequel series set a few years before Ridley Scott’s original “Alien” movie from 1979, and the first series in the Alien franchise since “Aliens: The Series” in 1990. The first episodes of the series, from writer and director Noah Hawley, will debut in Hall H on Wednesday.

Filmmaker Dan Trachtenberg will be on the panel with stars Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, who plays the alien character Dek in the new film “Predator: Badlands.” It’s a fresh take on the Predator franchise, with a twist: for the first time in this universe, the Predator finds themselves on the opposite side of the hunt. Fans are excited to see what’s next for this new iteration of the franchise.

Marvel Takes It Easy

Marvel Studios, on the other hand, will be taking it a little easy on the Comic-Con front this year. Instead of the high-profile Hall H premiere or feature showcase that the studio has often used at Comic-Con, Marvel has chosen to sit this year out. The studio decided that the film that was supposed to open the “Avengers” season four had to go into production in the United Kingdom while Comic-Con was still in its lead-up phase. The production delays meant that Marvel felt like it was too close to be able to properly plan a “contagion-free” Comic-Con, according to Variety.

Sci-Fi Fills the Void

But while Marvel might be taking it easy on the Comic-Con front, that hasn’t dulled the enthusiasm of this year’s con in the slightest. Sci-fi juggernauts are stepping up to fill the vacuum, with Hall H headliners slated for the majority of the weekend.

Ryan Gosling, Peacemaker, and More

One of the most anticipated panels of the Comic-Con convention is the unveiling of “Project Hail Mary,” the big screen adaptation of the Andy Weir novel that also lent its name to the book’s famous hit Red Notice. Set to come out in theaters next year, the new film features Ryan Gosling as schoolteacher-turned-scientist Ryland Grace, who awakens alone on a spaceship with no memory of how he got there. He soon realizes that the ship is on a solo mission and that he’s the only hope for humanity. Gosling will appear on Saturday’s panel for the film alongside directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who also co-directed the Spider-Verse trilogy.

DC fans are also in for some updates for the second season of “Peacemaker.” The actor behind the franchise, James Gunn, also recently took the reins on DC’s wider cinematic reboot, starting with Superman. Gunn will be joined on the panel by cast members to share footage from behind the scenes and the new season.

Costumes and Community

Star-studded panels and blockbuster debuts aside, Comic-Con is, at its heart, a celebration of fandom. The convention center will be full of thousands of fans dressed as their favorite princesses, fighters, aliens, and heroes. And this year, they’ll also be coming to see Lucas at Comic-Con for the first time.