Tucson Comic-con 2026
For many years I wanted to go to a Comic-Con but have never actually done it. This year we ran into one of the heads of the Tucson Con while photographing the PACC Pet Parade and Festival. We offered our services doing photography for them and applied for media badges this year. We ended up being selected as photographers and I am so glad we were!
The event was huge, taking up 2 exhibit halls as well as another large room in the back, and that was just downstairs! Upstairs there was another long hallway and a few rooms off those. There were a ton of vendors selling comic books, art, and various trinkets.
The back room called the Hall of Heros was set up where professional cosplay groups would create staged areas and dress up in costumes to allow people to take photos with them.
Cosplayers were not limited to this back room. There were a ton of amazing cosplays all over the event! They ranged from professionals that spend all year perfecting something to fans in packaged costumes they bought online.
It was also super cool to get to talk to a few of the celebrities that took the time to come out and spend time with the fans. Most of them were amazing and were super friendly! The first one we got to chat with a second was Lou Ferrigno, the original Hulk and two-time Mr. Universe. He was very friendly and took the time to talk to everyone that came to see him and even got up from his chair to go around the table and do a selfie with everyone that wanted one.
The next one we talked to was Deep Roy. I immediately recognized him as having played the 168 Oompa Loompas in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but through some research I realized he has been in a ton of other things going back to the Never-Ending Story and the original Star Wars trilogy! We chatted with him for a few minutes and when we offered to take a picture of him in front of his name, he pulled out the business card we had given him and held it up for a picture!
Tracy Lynn Cruz was the next celebrity we talked to, and she was amazing as well. Seeing her interact with her fans was heartwarming and fantastic to see! She was the Yellow Power Ranger for the TV series Power Rangers Turbo (1997) and Power Rangers in Space (1998). She immediately left Hollywood after and became an advocate for autism. While she may have left Hollywood, she never abandoned her fans. She makes it a point to come out and spend time with them a few times a year at various Comic-cons.
Katie Sarife, known for her role in Annabelle Comes Home, was there with the Annabelle doll to spend time with fans. She was super nice and took pictures with fans even lugging the doll out and around the table with her for them. She and Annabelle seemed to get along great, and we even caught her braiding Annabelle’s hair during a lull in the action!
E.G. Daily also made an appearance! I think for many of us 80’s and 90’s kids, we know her best for being in Rugrats, The Powerpuff Girls, and Pee-wee’s Big Adventure; though she has been in a TON of other stuff!
Barbie Blank (yes that is her real legal name, her WWE stage name is Kelly Kelly) also attended this year. We did not get to talk to her as much, but she seemed super nice!
The last celebrity on the list probably should have been the first on the list by the size of their name and reputation, but if we are 100% honest, it was the only one that left us bummed out. William Shatner was there spending time with the fans and seemed like a nice guy. For every other celebrity, we were able to talk with them and their handler/assistant to ensure that they were ok with us taking pictures of them interacting with their fans. Everyone but Mr. Shatner’s handler was super nice and was like of course! The first evening Mr. Shatner’s handler gave us permission. The next morning there was a large group of Trekkies stepping up to meet Mr. Shatner and it was the perfect photo. Unfortunately, the handler changed his mind that night and had the security staff become far more aggressive in stopping pictures that were not paid for and even changed the rules that pre-approved Media were no longer allowed to take any images. Due to this we pulled all our images of Mr. Shatner and won’t be sharing them sadly.
Luckily for us there were two other heroes there! Every morning we stopped by to see this amazing lady at the Expresso Yourself cart for a Chai Latte and a Mocha. She was absolutely amazing and made what was probably the best Chai Latte I have ever had. (she did not want her picture shown, but here is her menu)
The second hero was more of a team of heroes working together to form one superhero, Mega Nachos! The first day I saw someone walk by with the largest tray of nachos piled high with toppings and I decided right then and there, before the weekend was out, we were going to have some! The second day we grabbed a tray for lunch and they did not disappoint! The crew even gave us extra cheese and toppings!!
Here comes the part you will want your tissues for! On the second day Comic-Can opens up the Hall of Heros an hour early to allow special needs and kids from some of the various hospitals around town to come in and spend time without crowds! We got a bunch of great shots of this, and it was awesome to see!
There were incredible cosplay groups that do some great things in the community that we got to meet as well! We were even asked by a couple members of one of these groups to do a mini shoot for them.
Overall, we had a blast this weekend shooting the event and walked away with a ton of great memories, and got to meet sooo many fantastic people while taking pictures. If you want to see more of the pictures, feel free to check out the galleries.
