Comics, collectibles, and cosplay were all on display at the 2025 New York City Comic Con for one of the most exciting weekends in fandom.
From October 9 through 12, over 250,000 convention goers visited the Javits Center to experience everything pop culture, from celebrity icons, comic creators, and creative cosplay.
The weekend’s biggest highlights included a wealth of celebrity panels, new announcements, exclusive previews, and trailer debuts across all forms of media, including HBO’s latest Game of Thrones spinoff, ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,’ AMC’s The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, and voice actors from the iconic Avatar: The Last Airbender, celebrating 20 years of the famed animated series.
Some of the biggest stars in the world made appearances throughout the weekend, including James McAvoy, Elliot Page, Sigourney Weaver, Shang-Chi star Simu Liu, and genre-defying musician turned comic book author Post Malone.
“Every year, we are reminded that New York Comic Con is more than a convention, it’s a community. The energy and passion for pop culture that fans bring to this event is palpable and what makes it so special,” Kristina Rogers, VP of ReedPop US Comics Portfolio, BookCon, and Star Wars Celebration, told Newsweek. “NYCC continues to set the standard for live events and the participation from studios, creators, and, of course, the fans, shows how powerful the community is in shaping the pop culture landscape.”
NYCC is a collector’s paradise. The show floor included well over 650 exhibitors showing off exclusive wares just for con-goers. Funko, Capcom, Bandai, and Marvel are among the marquee names on the show floor.
Be a Hero, See a Hero
For cosplayer Dominic Middleton from Memphis, Tennessee, the 1000-mile trip couldn’t have been better. “The experience this year at NYCC was absolutely a great one indeed, even though it was a bit short cause I only attended 2 days. Going to NYCC has always been a great experience for me. From meeting new people, to seeing amazing cosplays, and to just geek out at some of the stuff you see, the experience is well worth it,” the frequent con-goer told Newsweek via e-mail.
The convention’s magnitude makes it one of the more “exciting” events to attend in the world of fandom, according to Middleton, “One thing for sure is that it’s definitely top 2 when it comes to size/attendance. … NYCC is more commercial and mainstream than some of the others I go to. All the big companies you can think of are at NYCC. Marvel/Disney, DC/WB, Crunchyroll, Sony, Nintendo, Paramount, etc. It’s definitely one for the masses and you can find any and everything at NYCC,” he said.
But for cosplayers and attendees, NYCC is more than just the merchandise on the floor, it’s about community and connection.
“This year was a bit more special for me personally,” said Middleton. “One was that I got to cosplay with one of my best friends as two of my favorite characters on one of the days we were there. Whenever I go to comic cons, 95% of the time I usually go by myself and meet up with some con friends and catch up with them for a bit. But with my best friend and I, we hung out the entire time we were there together, so it was great getting to spend some quality time with him.”
With Comic Con, not only can you be your heroes, you can also see your heroes. This year’s affair was a particularly meaningful one for Middleton, a Fantastic Four superfan.
“I got to meet Ioan Gruffudd, who played Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic in the mid-2000s Fantastic Four movies. It was truly a special moment for me because of the impact those movies had on me as a kid. Those movies got me into reading comic books and help shape my love for the Fantastic Four that I have today. So getting to meet Ioan meant a lot to me, and getting to spend time with him for a few minutes chatting is going down as one of my top 3 Comic Con moments of all time.
NYCC returns to the Javits Center on October 8 through 11 next year to celebrate its 20th anniversary.