Photo: Michael Esmeralda

For four days, comic book addicts and pop culture aficionados from all over the globe descended upon Javits Center for New York Comic Con. With a range of esteemed actors, such as Mark Hamill (Star Wars), William Shatner (Star Trek), and everyone in between, the event brought together fans of all ages. From pint-sized fans in adorable onesies, amateur and professional cosplayers of all backgrounds, NYCC has become the largest comic convention to be found on the East Coast. While some returning fans lamented the switch from multi-day passes to single-day tickets, the event has certainly expanded its reach to an even larger audience.

Held at the sprawling Javits Center in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, fans attended New York Comic Con with colorful costumes from all kinds of fandoms. According to AM New York, New York Comic Con drew over 200,000 attendees during the four-day event, bringing together a plethora of fans and guest stars from all realms of pop culture. From The Walking Dead to Star Wars, there was something for every fan at the Javits Center this weekend in New York City. Over the weekend, our content manager, Jade Nicolette, and photographer/videographer, Michael Esmeralda, were able to cover the event this year. Here’s a quick recap of the first two days, including all the major highlights we learned at New York Comic Con 2017.

Thursday, October 5

Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Bill & Ted sequel in the works

On Thursday, actor Keanu Reeves revealed the first trailer for his upcoming sci-fi film, Replicas. Spoiler alert, he doesn’t say “Whoa”, but judging by the clip, the action-packed indie flick looks like a promising look into human cloning. Known for his role as Neo in The Matrix, Reeves also told fans that he will start filming the next John Wick movie in the next few months. The third installment in the gun-fu series, John Wick: Chapter 3 is slated to release on May 17, 2019, with filming to begin in January 2018. But before he was known for his roles in The Matrix and John Wick, many fans will never forget Reeves for his work in the classic comedy, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure.

According to SYFY, Keanu noted that a third film is in the works, with the title of "Bill & Ted: Face the Music". At the panel, Reeves added, “Bill and Ted were supposed to save the world, but when we see they’re like older and they haven’t saved the world. Their children are growing up and their wives are kinda like, ‘What the [F] is going on?’ Bill and Ted are playing to nobody and they’re still trying to write the song to save the world, and it’s just weighing on them. But then the future comes and says, ‘You gotta [save the world]! You gotta write the song!’ And so begins facing the music. That’s at least what it is right now.” Looks like we'll be seeing more of Keanu’s adventures in the near future, and we’re totally here for it.

Keanu Reeves also spent a significant amount of time in Puerto Rico while filming Replicas, and he’s no stranger to promoting charity efforts for a good cause. Reeves recently partnered with New York Comic Con to accept donations for the hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico. If you're interested in donating, Keanu Reeves, NYCC, and the Puerto Rico Film Friends Relief Fund is accepting donations for crisis relief efforts here.

Photo: EW

Rosario Dawson reads new sci-fi book from Andy Weir

Also at New York Comic Con, Audible presented a panel featuring author Andy Weir and actress Rosario Dawson, who unveiled a portion of her official audio book recording. Marvel fans are certainly no stranger to Dawson, who have embraced her role of Claire Temple from the popular Marvel and Netflix television series. Loosely based off of the Night Nurse character from the original comics, Dawson is featured prominently in Marvel series, Daredevil, Luke Cage, and The Defenders, on Netflix. Dawson also recently voiced Billie Lurk for the video game Dishonored: Death of the Outsider and she is starring in the lead role for the upcoming William H. Macy directed-film, Krystal.

Andy Weir is the author of the hit sci-fi novel, The Martian, and is currently preparing to release his second book, entitled Artemis. The book focuses on Jazz Bashara, a smuggler who gets involved in a risky heist on the moon. In an interview with EW, Weir described Jazz as, "She’s flawed. She makes bad decisions. She’s incredibly intelligent, but she’s always looking for the shortcut." Look out for Weir’s novel, Artemis, and the audio book performed by Rosario Dawson, to be released on November 14th.

Friday October 6

Photo: Legendary/Universal

More details on Pacific Rim: Uprising

Directed by Guillermo Del Toro, the hotly anticipated thriller Pacific Rim first hit theaters back in 2013. Featuring Kaiju, mechas, and tons of action, the film was an exciting release for fans of the classic Godzilla franchise. While fans have been closely following the new developments for Pacific Rim: Uprising, we were treated with a brand new trailer and more details recently. At New York Comic Con, Uprising director Steven S. DeKnight revealed some new information regarding the upcoming sequel. According to DeKnight, the new Jaegar mechas will have a sleek upgrade, and the film will take place about a decade after Pacific Rim. Focusing on some of the universal themes present in the film, DeKnight said that anyone "can be a hero" and stressed that, "It's the person inside the Jaeger who is super." In Pacific Rim: Uprising, British actor John Boyega stars as the pilot Jake Pentecost, alongside Scott Eastwood as Nate Lambert, Rinko Kikuchi as Mako Mori. Boyega is best known for his role as the ex-Stormtrooper, Finn, from Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Directed by Steven DeKnight, the follow-up film, Pacific Rim Uprising, is set to be released on March 23, 2018. 

Photo: Hulu

Hulu screened the first episode of Runaways

Based off of the comics from Brian K. Vaughn and Adrian Alphona, Hulu unveiled a fresh new look at the upcoming series, Marvel's Runaways. The trailer features actor Virginia Gardner as Karolina Dean, Lyrica Okano as Nico Minoru, Rhenzy Felix as Alex Wilder, Gregg Sulkin as Chase Stein, Ariela barer as Gert Yorkes and Allegra Acosta as Molly Hernandez. Panel attendees were also given an exclusive screening of the first episode, and based off of their positive reactions, the show looks to be a promising new addition for Marvel's foray into television. Look out for Marvel's Runaways, which premieres on Hulu starting November 21.

Stay tuned for more coverage from New York Comic Con, including highlights from the major panels on Saturday and Sunday! According to Star Wars, the recent trailer for The Last Jedi trailer has amassed over 120.1 million views worldwide. You won’t want to miss out our coverage of The Last Jedi booth at NYCC, our experience at the panels, and plenty of cosplay photos to share from the event.

Written by Jade Nicolette (Twitter)

Photographer and Videographer: Michael Esmeralda (Instagram)