At Comic-Con '08, Hollywood's Watching

SAN DIEGO, July, 23, 2008 -- For four days a year, San Diego transforms into a veritable Mecca of comic book lore and science fiction fandom.

Starting this Thursday and running through Sunday, July 27, the city plays host to Comic-Con International, billed as the largest comic book and popular arts convention in the world. San Diego will be overrun by comic book geeks and the Hollywood elite, with officials expecting more than 125,000 to attend the convention.

Over its 38-year history, Comic-Con has been a playground for comic book fanatics, as devotees flock to Southern California to pore over mint-condition books and dress like their favorite comic characters.

Now featuring panels on video games, feature films and television series, Comic-Con has, in recent years, become much more than a haven for comic book collectors and superhero wannabes.

In the past decade, the convention transformed into a proving ground for the entertainment industry's most buzzed-about television shows and movies, said Mirko Parlevliet, editor in chief of Coming Soon Media, which tracks movie industry releases, in an e-mail.

"It's become so important, because if you can please the Comic-Con crowds, you can expect the general moviegoing public to follow suit," Parlevliet said. "Comic-Con attendees are a tough crowd."

While in the past, attendees were only able to meet the minds behind their favorite comic books, fans can now sit in on exclusive screenings and listen to star-studded panels for Hollywood's most anticipated new releases.

"Fans from all over North America, and, perhaps even, the world, flock to the event to try to get a close-up look at the stars and see new footage," Parlevliet said.

The panel for the 2009 comic book movie "Watchmen" is one of the most highly anticipated events of this year's Comic-Con, said Comicbookresources.com Executive Producer Jonah Weiland.

"This is the movie that is the Holy Grail of comic book films," Weiland said, "It's a remarkable piece of work that has not been matched in 25 years. It transformed the way comics were approached and written."

Parlevliet said audiences have been buzzing about the movie after a "Watchmen" trailer debuted in front of "The Dark Knight" last week.