Wizard World comes to Indianapolis for first time in 2015

It\’s spring and that means it\’s Wizard World season once again. With numerous new cities getting Wizard World for the first time, Indianapolis was one of those cities and comic book fans flocked to the Indiana Convention Center to experience Wizard World in all its glory. For Indy\’s first-ever Wizard World, the star lineup was an impressive one- featuring William Shatner, Karen Gillan, Liam McIntyre, James & Oliver Phelps from Harry Potter, Michael Cudlitz, Sonequa Martin-Green and Andrew J. West from The Walking Dead, WWE Superstars The Bella Twins, Gigi Edgely, Michael Rooker and numerous others. As always, there weren\’t just photo opps and autograph lines for fans to meet their favorite stars, but some of the celebrities had fan panels, which were spread out over the course of the entire weekend with William Shatner, The Bella Twins, James & Oliver Phelps, Karen Gillan, Andrew J. West and Michael Rooker seeing the busiest and fullest panels on the weekend. One of the most interesting panels of the weekend was that of Carrol Spinney- the voice of Big Bird and Oscar The Grouch on Sesame Street, during which discussed the origins and beginning of the show as well as how he got the job and what it was like working with Jim Henson. He also talked about the upcoming I Am Big Bird documentary, which is doing very well at almost every film festival in the country right now and will be releasing very soon. Perhaps the most entertaining panel was Michael Rooker from Guardians Of The Galaxy/The Walking Dead, who didn\’t stay on stage for fan questions. No, no, no- he came to the crowd and ran around the room answering questions from anyone who wanted to ask him anything- definitely unorthodox yet very entertaining. James O\’Barr- the creator of The Crow was also in attendance and held a panel of his own, where he talked about the history of the book as well as his thoughts on the 90\’s hit movie and what\’s coming with the reboot of the movie, which he is more involved with than the Brandon Lee classic that\’s become such a cult phenomenon. Along with the celebrity panels were numerous activity events that fans could participate- including art competitions, costume contests for adults and children, a storytelling session with acclaimed and legendary artist Michael Golden where the artist discussed how to craft and mold a story, making it your own and how to perfect it. Of course, it wouldn\’t be Wizard World without the sights. Superheroes, Disney characters, Power Rangers and Jedi/Sith Warriors were everywhere and in full effect. With this being the first Wizard World to hit Indy, the celebrity lineup was more than impressive. Having been organized and run to perfection, everyone in attendance got more than they bargained for and got their money\’s worth for sure. If Wizard World returns to Indy in 2016, they have a lot to live up to. -Reggie Edwards [lg_slideshow folder=\”2015/Wizard World Indianapolis/\”] Interviews with Michael Rooker, Gigi Edgely, Jake Lloyd, Anthony Montgomery, as well as video from some of the panels can be found below: