What do a fancy Taco Bell, a Party City selling murder supplies, a zombie slide, and a human claw machine have in common?
They're four of the more memorable activations spotted at this year's Comic-Con International, arguably the world's most high-profile pop culture convention, which took place in and around the San Diego Convention Center from July 19 to 22. Once a year, more than 130,000 costume-clad fans descend on the Southern California city to get a first peek at new comics, movie trailers, celebrity guests, and more—mostly in the venue's jam-packed Hall H, which this year saw big announcements, screenings, and panels from Warner Bros., Sony, Universal Pictures, and more.
Of course, not everyone wants to spend a sunny weekend inside the crowded convention center, which is why many brands take their efforts to the streets, providing public fan experiences for attendees even without a show badge. From escape rooms and human claw machines to over-the-top, fully immersive environments for upcoming shows, networks and studios use the long weekend to create memorable, Instagram-friendly experiences.
One big change this year: Marvel Studios, HBO, and Star Wars all took the year off, opting not to host panels and large activations, which meant that popular shows such as Westworld did not have a presence this year. (Last year's Westworld Experience was one of the con's more noteworthy activations.) It remains to be seen whether this was a one-year trend due to production schedules or a sign of how pop culture conventions may be changing.
Regardless, the weekend continues to host cool, wacky, creepy, and memorable activations and pop-ups from brands, including Hulu, Amazon, Fox, USA, and Syfy. Here's a look inside the colorful four-day event.
Throughout the four-day convention, Syfy hosted 10 panels, two fan parties, karaoke buses and bingo trollies, and pop-up fan awards hosted by Orlando Jones. The network also hosted a human claw machine, where fans could grab boxes with mystery merchandise.
USA worked with Campfire at the Mill on “Purge City,” a darkly comedic pop-up that promoted the upcoming TV series based on the Purge movie franchise, where all crime is legal for 12 hours once per year. Inspired by a Party City store, the shop displayed everything from emergency candles and masks to energy drinks and stain removers, plus interactive components and tongue-in-cheek demos.
The store’s on-theme items included greeting cards, bumper stickers, and T-shirts with phrases such as “Thinking of you this purge” and “If you are close enough to read this, you better hope it’s not purge night.”
Taco Bell, which is becoming known for its creative events, drew attention in San Diego this year with a Demolition Man-inspired pop-up restaurant produced by Cyrano Rox Experience Design. According to the 1993 movie, Taco Bell is the sole survivor of franchise wars—so the chain tried to imagine what the Taco Bell of the future might look like. The upscale space featured a piano player playing classical music, a gift shop, and a fancy four-course meal of Taco Bell cuisine.
To promote the new horror series Castle Rock, a Stephen King-inspired TV show about a cursed town in Maine, Hulu worked with Creative Riff to create a fully immersive—and fully creepy—experience. Guests could explore an on-theme bed and breakfast, which was designed to make them “question what is real, wonder who they are within this world, and begin to understand just why Castle Rock is called the unluckiest town on earth,” according to organizers. Creepy details included a tub full of mannequin limbs.
Across the street from the bed and breakfast was the Castle Rock Forest, which had additional scary details, including missing-person posters, a car that had crashed in a lake, and a faceless, hooded figure standing in the water. A branded campsite area gave attendees a place to relax and get a sneak peek at the show.
AMC brought back its large-scale Walking Dead-inspired activation this year, which featured a variety of show-inspired photo ops and activities such as Negan Batting Cages. A 22-foot zombie slide was inspired by one seen in Fear the Walking Dead.
Fox installed artwork promoting its X-Men-related show The Gifted throughout the city’s Gaslamp Quarter. Street teams were on hand to give passersby a blue/red gel viewer card, which caused the artwork to become three-dimensional.
Amazon Fire worked with NVE Experience Agency on an experience designed to depict the future of television, while also promoting various Fire TV products such as the new Fire TV Cube. The event brought attendees on a journey through the history of TV, showcasing how Fire TV makes it easy to watch shows, control smart home devices, listen to music, and more. On-site mini activations for Westworld, Jack Ryan, and The Good Place gave fans a fun place for a photo op.
Another fun photo op came in the form of a swing; guests posed in front of a wall of wires and the sign “Cord Cutters Only.”
To promote its dark comedy The Good Place, NBC worked with OA Experiential to recreate the show’s neighborhood in one of the network's biggest Comic-Con activations ever. The bright, colorful space evoked the show with pun-filled restaurant names, a giant shrimp carousel, and fun photo ops. NBC partnered with No Kid Hungry to donate 50 percent of sales of specific menu items.
Legendary Digital Networks built a larger-than-life version of Dell’s G5 15 Gaming Laptop outside the convention center. Guests could literally step onto the laptop’s keyboard and play the mobile game “Crypt of the NecroDancer.” Participating guests were entered to win a regular-size version of the laptop. The Visionary Group managed the activation on-site.
Syfy also worked with Mirrored Media on a merchandise giveaway. The network tapped three famous comic artists—Babs Tarr, Kim Jung Gi, and Jock—and two streetwear brands, who worked together to created limited-edition merchandise. Fans could stop by the New Children’s Museum every morning to grab the items, which sold out in minutes every day.
New this year was the Experience, a space from Grandesign in collaboration with the San Diego Padres that aimed to bring fans closer to the action. A three-acre space at the Lexus Premier Lot (formerly known as Petco Park) was transformed with food trucks, a beer garden, and evening entertainment such as Spider-Man: Homecoming and Cloak & Dagger screenings, music performances, and Fortnite tournaments. While the experience was open to the general public, Comic-Con badge-holders received V.I.P. perks.
Brands such as Samsung, NBC, and Freeform hosted activations at the Experience, including one for Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger also spearheaded by Grandesign. Participants recreated the scene where the main characters discover their powers for the first time, using bungee harnesses to create a shareable video.
To promote its upcoming drama Project Blue Book, which investigates the presence of U.F.O.s, History created an activation at the Experience where fans could study real-life U.F.O. cases in an immersive environment.
Inside the activation, which was produced by Civic Entertainment Group, attendees could send messages into space in an attempt to see if there is life beyond earth.
To promote the upcoming Facebook Watch series, in which a teenager escapes a dangerous cult, Fandom worked with the Visionary Group to create an Oculus Go VR experience and an escape room. The room brought fans into protagonist Minnow Bly’s world, where they had to solve puzzles, dive into the cult’s dogma, and complete a confirmation ritual.
Fox teamed up with Shake Shack for an exclusive fan event promoting Bob’s Burgers. Fans were picked up from downtown San Diego in a branded bus and brought to Shake Shack, which was decked out in artwork and props inspired by the show.
Located behind the San Diego Convention Center was a skate park from Adult Swim, created by Grandesign. The public fan event featured interactive games like mini golf, plus food and merchandise for sale.
Warner Bros. Television hosted its annual Comic-Con Media Mixer at Float at the Hard Rock Hotel. Life-size Lego versions of the characters from The Big Bang Theory decorated the pool area. Other fun details included signature cocktails with names such as the Super Hero Sweet Tooth and the Comi-Chameleon, plus old-school arcade games and a wall for Teen Titans Go! To the Movies that attendees could color with giant crayons.
On the ground, a photo-op-friendly optical illusion depicted Warner Bros. Studios.
FX took over the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Lawn with an interactive space called FXibition, designed to promote the channel's biggest shows. Produced by Creative Riff, activations included an immersive audiovisual experience for Legion and a deconstructed motorcycle park for Mayans MC. Other highlights included Archer sound boxes, where fans could get a photo of themselves inside a box covered in character art. Each box featured classic sound bites from the series.
The area also included the “Eccentricities Gallery” inspired by American Horror Story, where fans could explore odd and usual pieces of art relating to the show’s lore. Augmented reality was used to enhance the experience.
To promote the 13th season of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, tongue-in-cheek props and photo ops depicted the comedy series as a horror movie.
Elsewhere on the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Lawn was a series of activations from Fox, also produced by Creative Riff, including an immersive dome video experience for the show Cosmos. Dubbed the “Ship of the Imagination,” the collaboration between Fox and National Geographic made guests feel like they were traveling through the universe with narration by Neil deGrasse Tyson. Fans also received a photo of themselves sitting in the captain’s chair.
The area also promoted upcoming series The Passage, which depicts a post-apocalyptic world overrun by a highly contagious virus. Fans could interact with one of the “viral” patients from the show’s secretive medical lab.
The weekend’s Ready Player One activation, held at the Gallery at the Omni Hotel, was an '80s-inspired space full of nostalgic gaming stations and authentic film props and costumes. Guests could pose for futuristic photo ops and test their knowledge of 1980s trivia.
In keeping with the 1980s theme, an infinity room evoked a Rubik’s Cube. 15/40 Productions created the space.
IMDb returned this year with the IMDboat, produced by NVE Experience Agency. Located directly behind the convention center, host Kevin Smith conducted interviews onboard, which fans could watch from the public boardwalk. Branded pillows and decor used IMDb’s colors, and the hashtag IMDboat was displayed prominently.
In a fun blast from the past, 20th Century Fox Consumer Products invited Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans to participate in a scavenger hunt throughout the city. At each location, fans were rewarded with prizes, including Buffy Funko Pops, posters, stickers, T-shirts, comics, and more.
The annual After-Con Party, produced by NVE Experience Agency, took place at Omnia and featured a DJ set from Game of Thrones’ Kristian Nairn. Comic book-style signage decorated the walls.
