SAN DIEGO (CNS) - San Diego Comic-Con 2019 will continue today with appearances by actors Kristen Bell, George Takei and Aaron Paul as well as filmmakers Guillermo Del Toro and Kevin Smith during the pop culture convention's penultimate day.
Bell will participate in a panel discussion of the NBC series “The Good Place” with co-stars Ted Danson, D'Arcy Carden, Jameela Jamil, William Jackson Harper and Manny Jacinto as well the show's executive producers Michael Schur and Drew Goddard. The panel is scheduled for noon at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront's Indigo Ballroom.
Takei will discuss his new graphic memoir, “They Called Us Enemy,” at 1 p.m. in Room 25ABC with co-authors Justin Eisinger and Steven Scott as well as artist Harmony Becker. The book focuses on Takei and his family being interned with 120,000 other Japanese-Americans during World War II.
Shortly after, Paul will participate in a panel for HBO's “Westworld” with co-stars Tessa Thompson, Thandie Newton, Evan Rachel Wood and Jeffrey Wright. The cast and showrunners will discuss the show's upcoming third season at 1:15 p.m. in Hall H.
Del Toro and Smith will hold panels at 4 p.m. and 7:15 p.m., respectively, for their upcoming films. At the Horton Grand Theatre, Del Toro will talk about the monsters in the upcoming film adaptation of “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,” which he is producing, while Smith will show a preview of his film “Jay and Silent Bob Reboot,” a sequel to “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back,” in Hall H.
Panels will run from 10 a.m. to shortly after midnight. Additional panels include discussions of “Sesame Street's” 50th anniversary, the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Marvel Studios President and Producer Kevin Feige and a celebration of the convention's 50th anniversary by looking back on the first San Diego Comic-Con in 1970, then known as Golden State Comic-Con.
Events will also be held throughout the weekend at Petco Park, the Theatre Box, the Hilton San Diego Bayfront, the Manchester Grand Hyatt and the Balboa Theatre.
Throughout the day, the San Diego Blood Bank will continue its 43rd annual Robert A. Heinlein blood drive at the convention. Donors will receive a limited-edition “Avengers: Endgame” T-shirt and goody bag regardless of whether they have a badge to attend the convention or not.
Harbor Drive will be closed to all non-foot traffic from First Avenue to Park Boulevard from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. to accommodate the convention's large crowds. Local transit agencies like the Metropolitan Transit System and the North County Transit District will offer increased service to and from the convention center to make up for the closures.
The annual five-day convention brings in more than $147 million in economic activity to San Diego County. An estimated 130,000 people are expected to attend the festival this year.
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