Comic-Con 2026: Full Schedule

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10:00am PDT

Friday July 24, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am PDT

What do comic book writers do all day? During this fun and candid conversation, writers Melissa F. Olson (Archaic), Meghan Fitzmartin (Mary Sue), Brandon T. Snider (Supergirl's Family Vacation), Tyrone Finch (Batman/Superman: World's Finest), Brandon Hoáng (Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Kyoshi Warriors), and Comic-Con special guest Kelly Sue DeConnick (FML) compare notes on their daily habits, methodology, schedules, and what they do when none of it is working quite right.

Special Guests

Kelly Sue DeConnick

Comic-Con Special Guest

Kelly Sue DeConnick is best known for reinventing Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel at Marvel and for the Black Label standard-setting Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons at DC. Her independent comics Bitch Planet and Pretty Deadly (both from Image) have ranked as New York Times be... Read More →

Friday July 24, 2026 10:00am - 11:00am PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Comics, Superheroes, Writers & Writing

11:00am PDT

Pitching Your Comic to Publishers

Friday July 24, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm PDT

Room 4

It's nearly impossible to know what publishers are looking for at any given moment, so Comics Experience has brought together creators who have worked with nearly every major comics publisher to share their pitching insights. Andy Schmidt (editor-in-chief at BOOM! Studios), Tini Howard (Marian Heretic, X-Men), Rich Douek (Sea of Sorrows), and Chris Ryall (IDW Publishing, former editor-in-chief) share a trove of strategic information that can serve creators for years to come.

Friday July 24, 2026 11:00am - 12:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Books, Comics, Writers & Writing

12:00pm PDT

HEROTALK: Black Comics' (Old School) Message Board/Independent Creators United

Friday July 24, 2026 12:00pm - 1:00pm PDT

Room 4

It's taken awhile, but steadily, more and more Black creators are sending shockwaves through the comics and entertainment industries. This notable change is not recent, and many of the creators are not "overnight successes." Many first congregated on a turn-of-the-century website founded by Omar Bilal called The Museum of Black Superheroes and its extremely important message board, HEROTALK. Much of the industry, pros and fans alike, does not know about HEROTALK. This panel highlights the message board's role as a foundational element of Black comics history. Charlotte (Fullerton) McDuffie moderates a conversation with former HEROTALK colleagues, including Michael "Deac" Daniels, Hannibal Tabu, Robert Roach, and John Jennings, on how the community formed there and how many members moved from semi-anonymous debates to friendships and careers in and beyond comics.

Friday July 24, 2026 12:00pm - 1:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Comics, Education, Writers & Writing

1:00pm PDT

The Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics

Friday July 24, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm PDT

Room 4

Charlotte (Fullerton) McDuffie (Ben 10: Alien Force, Ben 10: Ultimate Alien, Ben 10: Omniverse, and My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic), Will J. Watkins (Motherland: Fort Salem; director, DMAD; founder of Chicago's first Black-owned comic book shop, now an online store, Mike's on Mars), Matt Wayne (Shadow Cabinet, The World Needs Heroes), Kevin Rubio (Star Wars: Tag & Bink, Green Lantern: The Animated Series), host Phil LaMarr (Static Shock, Justice League Unlimited), and keynote speaker J. August Richards (Angel, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) celebrate the life and work of legendary animation and comics writer, producer, and creator Dwayne McDuffie (Milestone, Justice League Unlimited) and the prestigious award in his name.

Friday July 24, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Animation, BIPOC, Comics, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Superheroes, Television, Writers & Writing

2:00pm PDT

LGBTQIA+ Activism in Comics

Friday July 24, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm PDT

Room 4

In a time of polarization when politics has seeped into every corner of popular culture, what is the role of comics creators? How do comic books and pop art comment on the current social and political climates . . . or should they at all? Prism Comics, moderator David Reddish (political journalist, anchor for Occupy Democrats, and host of The David Reddish Show), and panelists Tara Madison Avery (We're Still Here; publisher, Stacked Deck Press), Marc Andreyko (Torso, Love Is Love), David M. Booher (Canto, Ghostbusters, Killer Queens), Sarah Gailey (Upright Women Wanted, Eat the Rich), and William O. Tyler (We Belong, Theater of Terror: Revenge of the Queers) discuss how the Trump era has affected the popular genre of comics and how queer artists use their voices to inspire the public and be catalysts for change and empathy.

Friday July 24, 2026 2:00pm - 3:00pm PDT
Room 4

U: Updated, BIPOC, Books, Cartooning and Comic Strips, Comics, LGBTQIA+, Writers & Writing | 1: Programs, BIPOC, Books, Cartooning and Comic Strips, Comics, LGBTQIA+, Writers & Writing

3:00pm PDT

Comic-Con Goes Plop!

Friday July 24, 2026 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT

Room 4

DC's "new magazine of weird humor" went Plop! 50 years ago, but fans have never forgotten those Wolverton covers, the Sergio Aragones cartoons, the art of giants like Wrightson, Wood, Toth, and Ditko, and the genius of Joe Orlando. Plop! contributing writer/artist Lee Marrs (cartoonist, animator; 2026 Eisner Hall of Fame), Plop! editor Paul Levitz (former DC president), superfan Charles Kochman (editorial director, Abrams ComicArts), and moderator Jim Thompson (co-chair, Eisner Hall of Fame judges) share memories of Plop! and its creators.

Special Guests

Paul Levitz

Comic-Con Special Guest

Paul Levitz has been a comics fan (The Comic Reader), editor (Batman), writer (Legion of Super-Heroes), executive (decades at DC Comics, ending as president & publisher), historian (Will Eisner: Champion of the Graphic Novel) and now teacher of subjects related to comics and tra... Read More →

Friday July 24, 2026 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Anniversaries, Comic-Con Special Guest Spotlights & Appearances, Comics, Fandom, Horror and Suspense, Humor & Satire, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Writers & Writing, Tributes

4:00pm PDT

Reviving Native American Languages, Song, and Sequential Art Through Comics

Friday July 24, 2026 4:00pm - 5:00pm PDT

Room 4

Can comics help revive Native American languages, song, and sequential art by providing a platform for cultural bearers and knowledge keepers to share customs and traditions? Panelists explore that question through the upcoming Kumeyaay-language comic Iipay + Tiipay Aa—The People's Voice: How Language Connects Our People and Shuuluk Wechuwvi—Where Lightning Was Born, which uses the Kumeyaay creation story to support revitalization of the Tijuana River Valley through a trinational lens. The discussion considers how Indigenous knowledge can carry forward the languages, songs, and sequential art of Turtle Island, long vital forms of communication in Native communities. Featuring Dr. Zulema Reynoso (comic artivist and educator), Johnny Bear Contreras (Kumeyaay sculptor, culture bearer, and founder, the Eyaay Ahuun Foundation), Nicholas Smith (Kumeyaay; founder, 'Iipay Aa Language Preservation Project), Laurie Gonzalez (Payomkawichum/Luiseno; Rincon Tribal Council), Priscilla Ortiz-LaChappa ('Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel; 2022–2023 Miss Kumeyaay Nation), Matthew Alvarado (Kumeyaay; founder, Nu Ancients), and Eugene Braverock (Canadian Blackfoot actor and stuntman, Wonder Woman, Dark Winds; founder, the Oki Language Project).

Friday July 24, 2026 4:00pm - 5:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Comics, Education

5:00pm PDT

Hello Maggie!: Film Premiere at Comic-Con

Friday July 24, 2026 5:00pm - 6:00pm PDT

Room 4

Disney legend and Inkpot and Annie Award recipient Willie Ito (producer) presents the true story of the love and friendship between a boy and his pet bird while being interned at a WWII concentration camp for Japanese Americans at Heart Mountain, Wyoming. James Lopez (veteran Disney artist) joins Willie to discuss the production, followed by a Q&A moderated by Mindy Johnson (animation historian and author). Anne Marlborough (associate producer) and Sarah King (photographer) also participate.

Friday July 24, 2026 5:00pm - 6:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Animation, Books, Cartooning and Comic Strips, Education, Historical, International, Kids

6:00pm PDT

Best and Worst Manga of 2026

Friday July 24, 2026 6:00pm - 7:00pm PDT

Room 4

There is a great deal of manga available in English now, but what is really worth reading? A panel of opinionated manga bloggers and comics critics discusses favorite manga, disappointments from the past year, anticipated releases for fall 2026 and beyond, and underappreciated manga gems. Panelists include Shaenon Garrity (Otaku USA, Publishers Weekly), Laura Neuzeth (YouTube and TikTok vlogger; social media influencer), Leslie Flynn (Austin Public Library), Luke Berger (San Diego Public Library), and Deb Aoki (Mangasplaining).

Friday July 24, 2026 6:00pm - 7:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Anime & Manga, Comics, Web

7:00pm PDT

Manga Recommendations for Non-Manga Readers

Friday July 24, 2026 7:00pm - 8:00pm PDT

Room 4

Manga is more popular in the U.S. than ever, but for some readers the massive world of manga can seem confusing, intimidating, or just "not for them." Publishing pros and manga experts, including Ben Applegate (director, publishing services, Penguin Random House) and Cayley Last (editor, Kodansha), and others, dispel misconceptions about the medium, discuss its rise in pop culture, and offer suggestions on how to get started. Whether a reader is 16 or 60, into superheroes, indie comics, autobiographical works, romance, or something else entirely, there is manga out there for everyone. Moderated by Ivan Salazar (senior marketing director, Kodansha).

Friday July 24, 2026 7:00pm - 8:00pm PDT
Room 4

1: Programs, Anime & Manga, Books, Comics

8:30pm PDT

Howard the Duck

Friday July 24, 2026 8:30pm - 10:21pm PDT

Room 4

(1986, directed by Willard Huyck, starring Tim Rose, Lea Thompson, and Tim Robbins; PG)

40th Anniversary screening! A generation before the Marvel Cinematic Universe, visionary filmmaker George Lucas himself pioneered the first big budget Marvel character to come to the silver screen: his name is Howard, he’s a duck, and this is his story.

Friday July 24, 2026 8:30pm - 10:21pm PDT
Room 4

8: Films, Open Caption: English, After Dark

10:30pm PDT

Aliens

Friday July 24, 2026 10:30pm - Saturday July 25, 2026 12:47am PDT

Room 4

(1986, directed by James Cameron, starring Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, and Lance Henrickson, R)

40th Anniversary Screening! Decades after surviving the Nostromo incident, Ellen Ripley is sent out with Colonial Space Marines to re-establish contact with the terraforming colony on LV-426.

Friday July 24, 2026 10:30pm - Saturday July 25, 2026 12:47am PDT
Room 4

8: Films, Open Caption: English, After Dark

Comic-Con 2026

10:00am PDT

Kelly Sue DeConnick

11:00am PDT

12:00pm PDT

1:00pm PDT

2:00pm PDT

3:00pm PDT

Paul Levitz

4:00pm PDT

5:00pm PDT

6:00pm PDT

7:00pm PDT

8:30pm PDT

10:30pm PDT

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