SDCC 2025: Winners and Losers

San Diego Comic-Con 2025 is officially in the books, and it was a unique year, to say the least. Without Marvel or DC to anchor the pop culture excitement, the field was wide open for a number of smaller properties to steal the spotlight. Some took full advantage, building crazy buzz. Others did not. Here’s our rundown of the winners and losers of Comic-Con 2025.

Winners

Aliens and Predators

The legendary sci-fi enemies took center stage at Comic-Con 2025 and brought major excitement to both franchises. Alien: Earththe new FX show, screened an entire episode, which fans seemed to love, and had one of the biggest, most ambitious activations at the entire convention. Predator: Badlandsthe upcoming theatrical release, confidently showed an unfinished first 15 minutes of the film, which were both incredibly awesome and hugely emotional. There was also a major activation and even a brand-new, canon-changing ending revealed for Predator: Killer of Killers that brings back the characters played by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny Glover. Plus, there might be another crossover in the future? Fans of both franchises had a very good Comic-Con teasing an even more exciting future.

Wile E. Coyote

After having his movie Coyote vs. Acme unceremoniously canceled by a certain corporation, the Road Runner-obsessed Coyote chose Comic-Con as the place to unveil the film in its new form. Now, the film has a release date, hilarious footage was shown, and audiences everywhere are poised to enjoy one animal’s quest to take down the major corporation that has failed him at every turn.

Project Hail Mary

Longtime attendees of Comic-Con know something special is coming when a studio spends the money to utilize the giant screens that engulf Hall H to project content during its panel. This year, it happened with Project Hail Mary, the March 2026 film starring Ryan Gosling, based on the book by Andy Weir, and directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller. The gang was all there (as well as writer Drew Goddard) to talk about the epic sci-fi adventure and screen almost 15 minutes of the movie. Fifteen minutes almost eight months out from release? That’s a huge swing. And it worked.

Lego

Every company with a booth at Comic-Con wants to put something incredible on display. Something to bring in the fans and get them talking. This year, one booth did that to such a degree, it was almost unfair to everyone else. That booth was Lego, which centered around a massive model of San Diego Comic-Con itself. It had the Convention Center, the show floor, all the cosplayers, and more. It was built with over 200,000 bricks, took over 1,500 hours to design and build, and was populated by over 8,000 mini-figures. It was truly an unforgettable sight.

George Lucas

George Lucas showing up to the last day of SDCC was not on our bingo cards before it was announced. So when the maker took the convention stage for the first time to a packed Hall H on a Sunday, it was like church. He got a full-on standing ovation, and it was so awesome to see him be surprised at the reaction. Along with Guillermo del Toro, Doug Chiang, and Queen Latifah, Lucas held court to introduce his Lucas Museum as a temple to enshrine the power of mythology. The discussion focused on the museum’s intention to keep art accessible to the masses in a time where propaganda seeks to erase history, and the call to action was so incredibly moving. The panel felt like the crown jewel of this year’s convention that really spoke to why we were all there, celebrating the pop culture we love and that inspires us.

Pennywise the Clown

Though It: Welcome to Derry didn’t get a full-on panel, it did get a hell of a showcase, with co-developers Andy and Barbara Muschietti taking the stage to share the opening scenes of the first episode. The footage exceeded our expectations for the Stephen King spin-off, promising a deeply disturbing (in all the best ways) series that’ll further the creepy spirit of the movies, complete with stomach-turning special effects and everyone’s favorite sewer-lurking clown. The fact that the Welcome to Derry showcase took place after 9 p.m. on Saturday night made us groan when we first spotted it on the SDCC schedule—but it actually made the moment feel more exclusive, and since it was held in a smaller room, more intimate too.

Peacemaker

James Gunn brought Peacemaker to the con for a fun panel that gave some insight as to how the former DCU show might cross over to the current DC Studios era. Star John Cena showed up dressed in his costume and discussed the character’s inner crisis. Off-site, Peacemaker had a fantastic immersive activation, which held timed rock shows for fans. It was really neat to see clues about how the show will connect to Superman—and as you exited, Peacemaker came on screen to kick you out, with the words under him warning that the dimension was deteriorating. So we guess this is how James Gunn blows up the DCU, eh? He’s a legend for getting that final dig in at SDCC.

The Toxic Avenger

Remember that sad moment in history when cult-movie fans thought Macon Blair’s Toxic Avenger reimagining might not actually get released? We’re in a fully irradiated period of joy now, with the movie hitting theaters at the end of August and Toxie and company getting a splashy presence at San Diego Comic-Con. Fan screenings took place outside the convention itself, while the director and cast (including Peter Dinklage and Elijah Wood, as well as legendary Troma founder Lloyd Kaufman) took the stage at Hall H to spread the gospel of splatter.

Interview with the Vampire

The Vampire Lestat may be a year away, but fans of the Anne Rice Immortal Universe were treated to a first look that rocked the con. Sam Reid embodies the rock star Lestat with sheer charisma and menace in the footage we saw. We also got to find out who else is joining the cast alongside Reid, Jacob Anderson, and Eric Bogosian—the name Delainey Hayles should ring a bell but it’s not known if she’ll be playing a ghost Claudia or someone else. As for the Queen of the Damned, Akasha? Showrunner Rolin Jones teases that an offer has been made to an actress but is still keeping us in the dark about just who it is.

Clown in a Cornfield

An indie horror movie that already hit theaters wouldn’t usually get a splashy activation just to celebrate its upcoming streaming debut—but Clown in a Cornfield is a very fun movie, and it made sense that Shudder and AMC wanted to draw more attention to it. While there was no dedicated Clown panel, author Adam Cesare hit the convention to sign copies of his source-material novel, and just across the street from the convention center, fans could walk through an activation that brought the story to life, complete with a genuinely spooky haunted corn maze.

Losers

Comic book movie fans

Over the past 20 years, San Diego Comic-Con has been ground zero for the latest and greatest in comic book movie news. But, in 2025, it was basically deserted. Yes, two very cool films are currently in theaters (Superman and The Fantastic Four: First Steps) but outside of lots of cosplay for both, you wouldn’t really know it. DC Studios president James Gunn was on hand for Peacemaker but didn’t speak about his current film or any future films. And Marvel, after screening its big summer 2024 release Deadpool & Wolverine at the convention last year, all but ignored Fantastic Four. There was a booth, sure, but nowhere for anyone at the convention to see the movie (without driving 15 minutes out of the way).

And yes, we know both studios are in an off time in terms of releases, with the next DC movie 11 months away and the next Marvel Studios movie 17 months away, but it would have been awesome to see or learn something. Anything.

Acme

In your face, Acme! You tried to get the panel for Coyote vs. Acme shut down. You even tried to send in some of your high-priced lawyers to usher everyone off stage. But it didn’t work. Footage was played, and excitement was piqued. Imagine being a company that wouldn’t want to release a movie that looks so funny, smart, and appealing? Oh, Acme.

Tron: Ares

This is a weird one because, on the surface, the Tron: Ares panel had it all. Big stars, incredible effects, and some really fun footage. There was even a booth on the floor with one of the most desired exclusives of the entire convention. But once the lights came on after the panel, fans had learned almost nothing about the movie. What’s it about? Who are the characters? It was all very surface, which, after the previous, much more informative and heartfelt panel for Predator: Badlands, felt like a huge contrast. Plus, while the footage looked beautiful, it just seemed a little flat? We’re holding out hope, especially with the sure-to-be incredible Nine Inch Nails soundtrack, but the panel left us wanting a bit too much.

Jason Voorhees

While it’s exciting to know that there’s fresh energy behind the Friday the 13th franchise, the Jason Universe panel was maybe one that could have been held until a later date. There just wasn’t much to share beyond teases. Fans got a quick trailer for Sweet Revegean upcoming short film featuring Jason’s first cinematic appearance in this new era, as well as a very brief behind-the-scenes peek at Peacock series Crystal Lakewhich is too early in its production to reveal much. Perhaps next SDCC, there’ll be a sequel panel with more gory details to share?

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