Montreal Comiccon is lighting up the Palais des congrès this weekend. The three-day event is once again an unparalleled pop culture celebration of programming, shopping, gaming, cosplay, and celebrity appearances. Spanning three floors , more than 40,000 people are expected to attend. I was on hand Friday, once again blown away by seeing people of all ages dressed as their favorite super heroes and comic book characters. See my Instagram @mikecohencsl to catch some of the fun.
The second floor houses a sprawling 200,000-square-foot market featuring specialty retailers offering collectibles, toys, books and merchandise, alongside an Artist Alley where local and international creators present their unique work. This level also includes the celebrity photo ops area, located directly within the exhibit hall, where fans can buy professional photo opportunities with their favorite stars. The fifth floor hosts panels, celebrity guest appearances on stage, Saturday evening’s popular costume contest The Masquerade, and the 2026 Canada Cosplay Championship (Cosplay-Eh!) finale on Sunday, crowning Canada’s best cosplayers. The Tabletop Role-Playing Game (TRPG) section offers adventurers the chance to battle dungeon-dwelling dragons and more. The seventh floor is dedicated exclusively to the Autograph Area, where fans can meet their favorite personalities and purchase autographs.
Chris “Mr Big” Noth on stage.
Leading this year’s guest lineup are cinema legends: Lea Thompson and Cristopher Lloyd (Back to the Future); Ron Perlman (Hellboy, Sons of Anarchy), fresh off his special appearance on Prime Video’s hit live-action series Fallout; and Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street, V), who returned by popular demand. Featured guests included Catherine Tate (The Office, Doctor Who), a multiple award winner for her BBC sketch comedy series The Catherine Tate Show; Christopher Noth (Big, Sex in the City), Tom Welling (Superman); Tyler Hoechlin (Superman & Lois, Teen Wolf); Tyler Posey (Teen Wolf, Scream: Resurrection); Neil Newbon (Baldur’s Gate 3), the voice and motion-capture actor behind the wildly popular character Astarion Ancunin; Robert Patrick (X-Files); Giancarlo Esposito (The Mandaloria, Breaking Bad, The Boys), Elizabeth Tulloch (Superman & Lois) and Brandon Rogers (Helluva Boss, Hazbin Hotel), voice actor and co-writer on two of the most successful animated series on YouTube and Prime Video. A surprise addition was Christopher Noth of Law and Order and Sex and the City fame. He ran into some controversy a few years ago with sexual assault allegations levelled against him. I tried to get an interview with him, but he was not giving any. He did, however, come on stage for Comiccon’s first-ever opening ceremony held at 11:30 am on Friday to kick things off. It was a very impressive show, highlighted by some of the performers of the current Cirque de Soleil Echo Show.
Staying true to its roots, Montreal Comiccon has welcomed three legendary comic book creators who have shaped some of the industry’s most seminal works. Canadian artist Tom Grummett, known for his extensive work on Adventures of Superman, Action Comics, and Superman: The Man of Tomorrow, co-created the new Superboy and drew 64 issues of his self-titled series. He also participated in two of DC’s biggest publication events: The Death of Superman and Batman: Knightfall.
Everyone loves a good costume.
Dan Jurgens, writer and penciller with numerous Superman titles to his credit, also participated in The Death of Superman and co-created iconic characters including Doomsday, Hank Henshaw, and Booster Gold. Darick Robertson, who found success with Warren Ellis on Transmetropolitan, collaborated with Garth Ennis on The Boys, creating violent and morally corrupt versions of DC’s Justice League characters, including Homelander, a narcissistic version of Superman.
Program Director Cliff Caporale told me when we spoke Friday that this was the largest attendance for an opening day he could remember. Do celebrities want to come here? “It is Montreal,” he said. “We are not the hardest sell. It is a great city. Everyone talks about it.”
Be sure to check out the booth spearheaded by Lynn Harper, a music specialist at Chateauguay Valley Regional High School. She was a finalist for the MusicCounts Teacher of the Year award in 2025. USS Renaissance and Starfleet International, an international Star Trek Club. Their chapter raises money for the Montreal Children’s Hospital.
There are plenty of games for the kids.
The event also features an Indie Game Zone presented by Loto-Québec and a Tabletop Game Zone run by Asmodee in collaboration with Infini-Jeux, catering to the growing community of tabletop role-playing game enthusiasts.
According to an early 2026 industry report, the comic book market size is forecast to increase by USD 3.35 billion at a CAGR of 4.5 percent between 2024 and 2029. The Canadian comic book market is experiencing sustained growth. The Canadian market alone generated approximately a revenue of USD 331.4 million in 2024 and is expected to reach USD 669.7 million by 2033. The Canada market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.2 percent from 2025 to 2033. The continued success of comic book adaptations in film and television, combined with growing collector interest and the popularity of manga, continues to drive market expansion.
Reflecting the mainstream status of anime and manga in 2026 (with an estimated 50 percent of Netflix’s global subscriber base watching anime). Canada ranks among the ninth to tenth largest anime markets outside Japan, and the global manga market is expected to grow from $16.28 billion in 2025 to $19.01 billion in 2026.
Launched in 2009, Montreal Comiccon is a multi-genre pop culture convention showcasing the best in comic books, sci-fi, horror, manga/anime, toys, movies, video games and the entertainment universe. The fast-growing Comiccon exploded from a few hundred guests to over 65,000 visitors to become one of Montreal’s most popular annual events. The show features a vast exhibit room, an artist alley, corporate and interactive booths, guest panels, film screenings, celebrity autograph and photo sessions, a costume contest and a masquerade, and a multitude of activities for pop culture fans of all ages.