Don't feel sorry for the celebrities who were packed off to San Diego this weekend for Comic-Con. Once a small, relatively unwatched meeting of nerds, the multi-fan convention is now the go-to place for news about your favorite comic-book adaptations and science-fiction shows.
The biggest news of this year's conference was the announcement of the cast for "Watchmen," based on a dystopian novel by Alan "V for Vendetta" Moore, but fans turned out for the stars too. Like Gwyneth Paltrow, who is appearing as the "Iron Man"'s assistant in the eponymous film due next May. As you can see, she made the difficult and unpopular decision not to attend in costume. The question is, who would win in a fight between Iron Man (played by Robert Downey Jr.) and the new Hulk (played by Edward Norton, a movie of which is also coming out next year)?
Even stars who didn't have comic-inspired movies to promote dropped by to hang out at Comic-Con and attract some of those approximately 120,000 visitors. Jessica Alba, who played Sue Storm the Invisible Woman in both "Fantastic Four" movies, dropped by to speak, as did Clive Owen who appeared with Alba in the 2005 movie "Sin City" (based on a series of graphic novels). News of a made-for-BBC "Buffy" prequel, photos of Heath Ledger as the Joker from the new Batman flick and teaser footage from the new season of "Heroes" were also in the offing.
Next year's Comic-Con will be held July 24-27th, and if you're smart (and a little nerdy), you'll make your hotel reservations now.
[Photo: AlexChoi]]]>