FAN EXPO Philadelphia Returns May 3-5, With Lopez, Gunn, Day, McKenzie Among First Stars

Mario Lopez, Sean Gunn

PHILADELPHIA, USA, 2024-Jan-23 — /EPR Network/ — Fans of all things pop culture have marked their calendars for the return of FAN EXPO Philadelphia, set for May 3-5 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. With the show fewer than four months away, the guest roster for the pop culture extravaganza gets off to a huge start with the first nine standouts in what will be a star-studded lineup.

First to the post are headliners Mario Lopez (“Saved by the Bell,” “Access Hollywood”), Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy, “Gilmore Girls”), Felicia Day (“The Guild,” “Dragon Age: Redemption”), Ben McKenzie (“Gotham,” “The O.C.”), Holly Marie Combs (“Charmed,” “Picket Fences”), Adam Savage (“MythBusters,” “Unchained Reaction”), Michelle Hurd (“Star Trek: Picard,” “Law & Order: SVU”), Sofia Boutella (Rebel Moon, The Mummy) and Jason Lee (“My Name is Earl,” The Incredibles).

Lopez first gained attention for his role as “A.C. Slater” on “Saved by the Bell” from 1989-1993 and its reboot in 2020-21. He also served as host for the syndicated entertainment newsmagazine shows “Extra” and “Access Hollywood.” He also starred in the police drama “Pacific Blue” and had a recurring role on the daytime drama “The Bold and the Beautiful.”

Gunn played “Kraglin” in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) and its sequels in 2017 and 2023, as well as providing the physical performance via motion capture for “Rocket Raccoon” in the films plus Avengers: Infinity War, Endgame and Thor: Love and Thunder. He also portrayed “Kirk Gleason” throughout the seven-year run of “Gilmore Girls” among his 60+ acting credits.

Day has more than 100 credits, from films to TV series to voice work, with many highlights including a 66-episode run on “The Guild” and recurring spots on “Supernatural” and “Eureka.” She teamed with original series host Joel Hodgson for a five-year run on the recent iteration of “Mystery Science Theater 3000” and had her first big fandom exposure in a recurring role as “Vi” on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”

McKenzie, who portrayed the lead character “James Gordon” in the hit Fox TV show “Gotham,” was born in Austin, Texas, appearing in theater productions and a few TV shows including “The District,” “JAG” and “Mad TV” before the success of “The O.C.” launched him into stardom. His film roles have included Junebug opposite Amy Adams and 88 Minutes with Al Pacino. The University of Virginia graduate’s starring role in “Gotham,” which regularly hit nearly seven million weekly viewers, followed the Commissioner’s life before Batman came onto the scene.

Combs starred in “Charmed,” which ran for eight seasons and has adopted a huge, loyal following since, as “Piper Halliwell,” one of three witch sisters fighting evil in modern day San Francisco. That followed her breakout role in 88 episodes of the hit series “Picket Fences” and later led to appearances in more than 30 series and movies and a long run as “Ella Montgomery” on “Pretty Little Liars.”

Savage, best known for his work as the co-host of the Discovery Channel series “MythBusters” and “Unchained Reaction,” has made his mark in the entertainment world as a special effects designer and fabricator, actor, educator, television personality and producer. His special effects work on such films as Space Cowboys (2000), Galaxy Quest (1999), Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999), Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002), The Matrix Reloaded (2003) and others earned him acclaim that led to the “MythBusters” gig and front-facing success.

Hurd has appeared in a wide variety of projects, notably in regular roles in “Star Trek: Picard,” “Blindspot,” “Hawaii Five-0,” “The Glades” and “Law & Order: SVU.” She had her first extended exposure as “Dana Kramer” on the daytime drama “Another World,” and last year co-starred opposite Jonathan Bennett and Cedric the Entertainer in the feature film The Plus One.

Boutella played the lead character in last year’s Netflix action-adventure feature Rebel Moon: Part One: A Child of Fire, a follow up to her role in “Rogue Heroes” a year earlier. She co-starred opposite Tom Cruise in the fantasy-adventure film The Mummy in 2017 and was also top billed in the science fiction drama Settlers and Prisoners of the Ghostland alongside Nicolas Cage and Nick Cassavetes in 2001 and the horror film Climax in 2018.

A native of Southern California, Lee is a photographer, producer, director, and actor. Having established a successful career as a professional skateboarder during the sport’s pivotal late 80s and early 90s period, Lee would go on to pursue acting, which would lead to working in film, television, and voiceover, and with such directors as Kevin Smith, Lawrence Kasdan, Cameron Crowe and Rebecca Miller.

Single-Day Tickets, Three-Day Passes, Ultimate Fan and VIP Packages for FAN EXPO Philadelphia are available now. Advance pricing is available until April 18. More guest news will be released in the following weeks, including line-up reveals for additional headline celebrities, comic creator guests, voice actors and cosplayers.

Philadelphia is the eighth event on the 2024 FAN EXPO HQ calendar; the full schedule is available at fanexpohq.com/home/events/.

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