Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

Arts & Culture

Comic-Con To Draw Thousands Of Pop Culture Fans

San Diego Comic-Con attendees enjoy Preview Night, July 18, 2018.
Elma Gonzalez Lima Brandao
San Diego Comic-Con attendees enjoy Preview Night, July 18, 2018.

Bryan Cranston, Olivia Munn and Sterling K. Brown will be among the stars appearing at the San Diego Convention Center Thursday for the opening day of Comic-Con International, an annual celebration of pop culture.

Cranston will take part in a "Breaking Bad" 10th anniversary celebration with fellow cast members Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn and Bob Odenkirk, as well as showrunner Vince Gilligan. The panel is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. in Hall H, the Convention Center's largest venue.

Odendirk and Gilligan will also participate in a panel on "Better Call Saul," which is the television series prequel to "Breaking Bad." That panel begins 3:30 p.m. in Hall H.

Advertisement

SPECIAL COVERAGE: San Diego Comic-Con International

Munn and Brown, along with co-stars Keegan-Michael Key and Thomas Jane, will take part in a panel on the upcoming "Predator" remake, set for release on Sept. 14. That panel takes place 10:30 a.m. in Hall H.

Other sessions during the day address healing from trauma through comics, making independent films across borders, popular science with several former "Mythbusters" crew members and a drawing instruction session with DC Entertainment publisher Jim Lee.

Earliest sessions begin at 10 a.m.; later ones run until around midnight. Topics vary wildly across movie, television, book, comic, video game toy and other popular art industries.

Apart from the Convention Center, convention venues include the Central Library, Hilton Bayfront Hotel, the Horton Grand Theatre and the Marriott Marquis.

Advertisement

San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and other civic leaders will kick off the convention 8 a.m. at the Hilton Gaslamp.

More than 130,000 people are expected to attend Comic-Con, which typically generates over $143 million in economic activity for the region.

With streets sure to be crowded, many officials recommend avoiding cars during Comic-Con weekend.

Visitors can travel around downtown using dockless bikes, scooters or pedicabs. They can also use public transit to reach Comic-Con venues.

MTS trolleys on the Sycuan Green Line route will depart from stations toward the Convention Center at least every 15 minutes during the duration of Comic-Con, including from SDCCU Stadium, which will offer 5,000 free parking spots.

The UC San Diego Blue Line and Orange Line will run similar schedules, with departures lasting until at least midnight in many cases.

The North County Transit District will also operate a special northbound train from the Santa Fe Depot on Saturday at 9:15 p.m.