Fan Expo Canada VP on this year’s highlights and evolving gaming programming

Fan Expo Canada 2024 is nearly upon us.

From August 22nd to the 25th, Canada’s biggest pop-culture event will return to Toronto’s Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Over the weekend, tens of thousands of fans are set to descend on Toronto to celebrate comics, movies, TV, gaming and more. And while the preview show prevented many guests from talking about film and TV projects amid the Hollywood strikes, that won’t be a problem this year. (That said, some actors may refrain from talking about gaming projects amid the SAG-AFTRA video game strike.)

“We truly see ourselves as being ‘Canada’s expo,’ and we live up to that annually by bringing in the very biggest and best for our fans, not only from the small screen, but also, of course, from the big screen, and now all sorts of anime voice actors, voice actors from your favourite games and, of course, comics where it all started,” says Andrew Moyes, vice president of Fan Expo HQ.

It’s time to get starstruck by your fave celebs at FAN EXPO Canada. Meet Rosario Dawson, Bryce Dallas Howard, Simu Liu, Marisa Tomei, Temuera Morrison, and many more fandom faves this month. Get your tickets now. https://t.co/ndGbmoVAmr pic.twitter.com/CoFLkiZlLN

— FANEXPO Canada (@FANEXPOCANADA) August 7, 2024

This year, he says some of the guest highlights include Rosario Dawson (Ahsoka), Bryce Dallas Howard (Jurassic World), Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad) and Mississauga, Ontario’s own Simu Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings). For a “bit of nostalgia,” he says, the show has also brought on the likes of Oscar-winning actresses Helen Hunt (Twisters) and Marisa Tomei (My Cousin Vinny), John Rhys-Davies (The Lord of the Rings) and even Blue’s Clues host Josh Dela Cruz.

“We see it as a huge responsibility to create this safe space where fans can come together as a community and celebrate. It used to be a safe space. It still is a safe space, of course, but now it’s so broad, so everyone is welcome, and everyone comes and participates. So that is a massive responsibility for us that we take very, very seriously,” he said. “And then, of course, we finish every year, every year and say, Gosh, how are we going to improve year over year? There’s always ways that we can look at the experience and make it more comfortable or smoother for our fans, but we really pride ourselves on really creating that playground where everyone can come together, be connected, and have a wonderful time together.”

On the subject of safe spaces, however, it should be noted that some fans have taken issue with one Fan Expo guest, actor and former mixed martial artist Gina Carano. In 2021, she was fired from The Mandalorian by Disney-owned Lucasfilm after sharing an Instagram post comparing being a conservative to Jewish people in concentration camps. She has also been criticized for taking a stance against COVID-19 vaccines, suggesting “voter fraud” amid former U.S. president Donald Trump’s unproven claims of election interference and transphobic posts. Carano is currently suing Disney, alleging wrongful termination.

Whether you know her from The Mandalorian or Deadpool, you won’t want to miss meeting the fearless Gina Carano at FAN EXPO Canada this August. Get your tickets now. https://t.co/UCLcRKgSJd pic.twitter.com/ldQvgTWQL1

— FANEXPO Canada (@FANEXPOCANADA) April 30, 2024

When asked about the concerns that fans have regarding Carano at Fan Expo, Moyes said her attendance is a matter of celebrating “all” fandoms.

“We have a specific way that we ask all of our fans and all of our guests, all of our partners, all of our key stakeholders, that everyone behave in a way that is welcoming and comfortable for everyone. We celebrate all fandoms. So everyone has a different fandom, and everyone has a different person that they’re a fan of, and it’s up to us to deliver that for everyone,” he said. “So we really work on that, but ultimately, we work with all of our key stakeholders to make sure it’s a safe and comfortable place for everyone, and that’s what we’ll do again this year.”

More gaming and Canadians, together

With gaming being my main passion and MobileSyrup beat, I’m always eager to see what sorts of related programming Fan Expo has each year. Lately, it hasn’t been a whole lot, outside of some well-known actors. Pre-COVID, publishers like PlayStation, Nintendo and Xbox would have booths where you could demo upcoming games, but those have all but gone away in the past few years.

When asked if this is due to a shift in focus from Fan Expo or publishers simply not being as interested, Moyes said COVID did initially make it “challenging” but notes there are still notable attendees. In particular, he cites Bell, which holds an annual esports competition, as well as Xbox, which is bringing back its ‘Xbox PC Game Pass Arena’ to let fans play with pro gamers. (Neither, it should be noted, let you play big upcoming games à la PAX in the U.S. or Gamescom in Europe.)

He adds that this year has such heavy hitter gaming actors as Canadian-American Jennifer Hale (Mass Effect), Neil Newbon (Baldur’s Gate 3) and former Mario star Charles Martinet. (Sonic the Hedgehog‘s Roger Craig Smith and Halo‘s Keith David were also set to appear but have since cancelled.)

But Moyes notes that Fan Expo also wants to do more to highlight the people who make the games. “There’s so much more to gaming than just the voices and what you see on the screen, it’s also learning what’s going on for those founders and creators, and that’s a space that we want to move into,” he said.

In the past, this has been through a panel with Canadian Call of Duty developers, but this year, it’s even bigger. Announced shortly after my interview with Moyes were two new high-profile gaming guests: storied Canadian game maker Rod Ferguson (Gears of War, Diablo) and famed producer and host Victor Lucas (Electric Playground). On top of that, Fan Expo will host a panel with some of the Ubisoft Toronto developers behind Star Wars Outlaws.

Star Wars Outlaws is co-developed by Ubisoft Toronto. (Image credit: Ubisoft)

Moyes says getting to feature that Canadian talent, in particular, is a full-circle opportunity for Fan Expo.

“Fan Expo Canada has really been our signature event. It’s an incredible story where our founder, Aman Gupta, developed this over 20 years ago. So it’s a wonderful Canadian story, really, of success. We love to bring that Canadian flavour.” In addition to the likes of Liu, Hale and the Outlaws team, other Canadians at Fan Expo Canada this year include some of the cast of Murdoch Mysteries (including star Yannick Bisson), all three Trailer Park Boys and most of the main cast of Letterkenny.

“It feels a bit like home for us when we do this Toronto show.”

This interview was edited for language and clarity.

Tickets for Fan Expo Canada start at $39 and can be purchased here. A rough draft of the schedule can be found here. An official mobile app with a floor plan, personalized schedule creator and more can be downloaded from Android and iOS.

Image credit: Fan Expo