If you had to declare a winner at San Diego Comic-Con 2026, it would have to be Marvel Studios. Their Saturday night panel for Avengers: Doomsday was the main event of Hall H with a bevy of actors from Anthony Mackie to Paul Rudd and Doctor Doom himself Robert Downey Jr. on hand. Doom even took over the Gaslamp Quarter with signage announcing the film’s release date laid over the famous archway. In true supervillain fashion, the signage was done without the city’s permission resulting in a fine of over $160,000 to the ad company responsible. A drop in the bucket of what is sure to be a billion dollar blockbuster.
Marvel also surprised the Hall H crowd with the announcement that Ryan Gosling would star in a Ghost Rider feature film directed by Shawn Levy and The Long Walk star David Jonsson would take on the role of the Black Panther in the next installment of the Wakandan King. In the exhibit hall, Marvel had a mock-up of the Danger Room to celebrate the return of the X-Men and various Avengers costumes, including Dr. Doom’s armor and a new character known only as the Latverian Witch. This has led to online speculation that Doom may have his own coven providing mystical assistance. Not everyone walked away with a smile on their face as thousands were turned away, despite receiving wristbands that were supposed to guarantee entry.
DC beat out Marvel when it came to offsites. The lone panel for DC Studios was for the Lanterns television series starring Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre with a guest appearance by Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner. Behind Petco Park, DC and Warner Bros set up a training facility where prospective guests could perform a series of tasks (similar to an escape room) to earn a power ring and become a member of the Green Lantern Corps. DC also won the day when it came to comics. This was the second year in a row where Marvel held no creator signings at their booth, Meanwhile, DC hosted signings with top talent like Scott Snyder, Joshua Williamson, Matt Fraction, and Jim Lee. Their Absolute line continues to be a massive hit with raw copies of Absolute Batman #1 hovering at the $300 mark. Friday’s DC cosplay gathering was replete with fans dressed as the Absolute versions of Catwoman, Zatanna, Two-Face, and Wonder Woman.
In a true surprise, Johnny Depp appeared at Comic-Con in full make-up and costume as Ebenezer Scrooge to promote Ti West’s upcoming adaptation of A Christmas Carol. Across the street from the convention center, Paramount installed a storefront straight out of Victorian England with a working clock and fake snow. Deep emerged Thursday afternoon and interacted with Christmas carolers and even cosplayers dressed as Jack Sparrow and Edward Scissorhands. Onlookers continued to flock around Scrooge and Marley hoping Depp might emerge for an encore performance. Instead, he crashed the Collider’s Directors panel in Hall H to premiere the first teaser trailer for Ebenezer. Paramount also ran their annual lodge with a long and constant standby line throughout the convention. The Lodge was a fun way to get free snacks, drinks, and a UFC towel to wipe your sweat caused by the toasty San Diego weather. All the while celebrating sixty years of Star Trek, along with Yellowstone, South Park, and Avatar: The Last Airbender as an Andorian DJ spins tracks.
The ubiquitous poster tubes passed out at the Fox booth were no longer a thing this year. Also, the Hulu Animayhem offsite moved from the waterfront to the smaller lawn by the Hilton Gaslamp. FX, which had previously brought experiences based on The Bear, American Horror Story, and What We Do in the Shadows, was completely absent from their usual spot opposite the Hilton Bayfront. Laika used to have the best offsite years ago with a de facto Laika museum installed at the former site of Dick’s Last Resort. The massive workshop showed off the elaborate sets and puppets of their filmography from Coraline and Kubo and the Two Strings. Laika returned to SDCC, but in a far more stripped down version. To promote their newest film Wildwood, they installed an entrance way in front of the Hard Rock Hotel. Unfortunately, it was nothing more than a quick photo op and a free pin. On the flip side, Apple TV earned rave reviews for their activations for Widow’s Bay and Silo, the latter featuring an after-hours party and an impromptu performance by actor/rapper Common.
Sideshow Collectibles made their welcome return to Comic-Con though with a smaller footprint than years before. Sideshow once again brought a litany of highly detailed statues and high-end action figures from Star Wars, X-Men, Universal Monsters, and the recent Supergirl movie. Lucasfilm brought numerous props and costumes from The Mandalorian and Grogu, including an AT-AT Walker and the Anzellan Starship manned by several of the cute little droidsmiths. Mattel was hot off the release of Masters of the Universe and had statues of the movie versions of He-Man and Skeletor flanking their Castle Grayskull entrance. No huge announcements were made in regards to the toyline other than the continuation of the Chronicles and Origins lines with a mixture of movie and vintage characters. The WWE brand had far more to show off with the biggest news being a line of figures for AAA, the WWE’s newly acquired lucha promotion. Famed luchadors such as El Hijo del Vikingo, Psycho Clown, La Parka, and cult favorite Mr. Iguana will be recreated in plastic form, along with classic figures for Psicosis and Rey Mysterio Jr. Mattel also revealed first-time figures for current superstars Blake Monroe, Talla Tonga, and Lash Legend and legends Jimmy Garvin and Buddy Roberts of the Fabulous Freebirds.
Hasbro revamped their booth and brought back the elaborate dioramas of the past. The Marvel Legends displayed gave new meaning to multiverse of madness with characters like Indiana Jones and Darth Vader hidden as Easter eggs. They even recreated the siege of Autobot City from Transformers: The Movie with an assortment of Studio Series figures. As a child of the 80’s, it was a treat to look over Hasbro’s Real Ghostbusters section dedicated to the retro toys some of us had growing up. While there’s no word if Hasbro will re-release the firehouse headquarters, they will produce Louis Tully and Janine Melnitz in Ghostbuster uniforms. Anybody looking for villains like Samhain or the Boogeyman will have to settle for the far more expensive figures from Mondo.
Super 7 returned with a vengeance despite their nearby brick and mortar store closing this past year (replaced by a smoke shop). Super 7 showcased their line of Thundercats toys along with the massive Thundertank. Newly debuted were a Godzilla Minus One figure, retro Visionaries based on the cult favorite 80’s cartoon, and a Battle Beast, the first of many Invincible figures from their Ultimate line. NECA had a smaller booth this year and shared their usual area with Diamond Select and Enesco Studios. NECA’s reduced output is partly due to losing the rights to the Ninja Turtles as Mattel gains the master license in 2027. Instead, NECA has turned to Sesame Street and DuckTales to fill in the gaps.
Even though some participants dialed it back, Comic-Con 2026 still felt like a convention that was firing on all cylinders. It continues to succeed as a mammoth celebration of pop culture, even if there are bumps (Hall H, line management, security) that need to be constantly smoothed over.
For more photos from SDCC 2026, check out the gallery on Flickr.