Fan Expo Dallas Sees Thousands Showing Off Their Fandom
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - At Fan Expo Dallas, thousands of people are showing off their fandom as the annual pop culture convention continues through the weekend in downtown Dallas.
The Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center is filled this weekend with fans who want to show just how much they appreciate their favorite comics, television shows, video games and more.
"It brings together all gaming, anything we do at home and see at the movies, we're able to come here and experience it firsthand. It's kind of like a second Halloween," Breanna Cooper said.
One of the biggest reasons fans attend is for the cosplay, where people dress up as their favorite characters with lots of handmade costumes.
People of all ages could be seen filling the convention floor with unique costumes from all over pop culture. From superheroes to video game and anime characters, cosplayers are showing off their talents in re-creating their favorite personalities.
Along with thousands of the attendees, there are also lots of booths set up throughout the floor where people can buy merchandise, collectibles, pieces of art and much more. At the area known as Artist Alley, artists set up their own booths to sell their own works of art.
Numerous guests such as television, movie and voice actors attended the convention to meet their loyal fans and to host some panels for discussion.
One particular guest, however, was in attendance at the convention in a special way.
Peter Mayhew, who played Chewbacca in the Star Wars movies, was scheduled to appear at Fan Expo Dallas before he passed away on Tuesday in North Texas. The booth where he would have appeared has been set up to allow fans to write in a memorial book to honor the late actor.
"Star Wars always sparked my imagination when I was younger, and the most interesting about Chewbacca was it taught you that even though you looked like a monster, you didn't have to act like one," Jose Arellano said. "He had the biggest heart in the Star Wars universe. It was awesome. That's why I wanted to pay my respects."
About 60,000 fans are expected to attend the pop culture event in downtown Dallas throughout the weekend to celebrate their fandom.
"My friends are kind of jealous... it's just a very good family thing to go out and have a good time and bond," 11-year-old Gavin Cooper said.