Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake Comic Con is in full swing at the Salt Palace Convention center this weekend.
Kicking off with an unprecedented event hosted offsite at the Vivint Arena Thursday, thousands of Utahns participated in the jokey #utahsickday to go see Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) and William Shatner (Captain Kirk) talk about their careers.
.@hamillhimself just told us he's contractually obligated NOT to talk about #StarWars Ep VIII (no spoilers coming!) pic.twitter.com/sd616OgZBk
— Andy Farnsworth (@KSLAndy) September 1, 2016
At the convention, panels featuring local geek experts will range in topic from "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" to how to write comedy, to the "Ghostbusters" movies, to how to cosplay.
"It's so much fun being part of a discussion with a room full of people who are just as passionate about a fandom as you are," said Rebecca Frost, a host of the "Hello, Sweetie" podcast and panelist at several SLCC panels. "I am so glad I get to be a part of serious (and not so serious) conversations about shows and books I love."
Celebrity guests include Stephen Amell, Famke Janssen, and Millie Bobby Brown. Attendees are invited to ask questions at panels, and get autographs and photos with the stars of their favorite shows and movies.
But one of the biggest draws of gathering genre-friendly people together convention style is cosplay. An opportunity to pretend to become the characters they love, superfans are out in droves at Salt Lake Comic Con.
Lexie (Prongs), Lexi (Wormtail), Jaycie (Padfoot) and McKenna (Moony) are some of those superfans. Inspired by a love for Harry Potter, the four discovered a fanfic called "Life and Times" about the parents of Harry and their mischievous friends, fondly known as The Marauders.
"We just became obsessed with The Marauders," Lexie said. "They're easygoing, they're sassy, they're fun."
"We call ourselves The Marauders," McKenna chimed in.
Check out the photo gallery to see more cosplayers, and follow along on Twitter for all the action @KSLPopReport.
Send in your own cosplay photos using iWitness.
