Hasti Namaki for The Game Of Nerds
The ninth edition of Montreal Comic-Con was a huge hit by all accounts. The crowds were bigger, the stars shined brighter, and the amount of things I wanted to throw money at were immeasurable.
Many incredible people were in attendance, the original voice of Mario, Sarah Wayne Callies and Jon Bernthal, David Tennant, Kevin Sorbo, Nathan Fillion, Alex Kingston, Jason Isaacs, Patrick Stewart, Freema Agyeman, Yanic Truesdale, and more. There were also incredible panels that dealt with hot topic issues like white-washing (cough cough Ghost In The Shell), representation, and consent in cosplay.
Now because there was so much going on, I had to pick and choose the things I wanted to go to, and that meant sacrificing a few panels for the sake of other ones.
On Friday, I had the pleasure to attend the Alex Kingston panel, she talked about everything from Doctor Who, to Gilmore Girls, to ER and shared some cool tidbits.
- She did a tv show with Robert Powell early on in her career where she had to slouch because he was offended by tall women
- River’s diary is full of stories and ideas, which was helpful for her in creating the character and her history with the Doctor that Alex didn’t yet know.
- She didn’t know that Gilmore Girls was absolutely word perfect so she did a lot of improv on the show, while Alexis Bledel got scolded for missing a “the”
Victor Millette
The next panel I had to be at was Jason Isaac’s, also known as Luscious Malfoy. My biggest regret from this year is not getting a picture with him, I got one with Tom Felton last year & this would’ve completed the family portrait!
- On the first movie, Alan Rickman took almost all of the Gringotts Gold home, so from then on, every piece and prop on set was inventoried. Jason didn’t even get to keep the wand.
- The first scene Jason shot was the last one of Chamber of Secrets in Dumbledore’s office. A lot of that scene was adapted and improved on the day, including his parting remarks to Harry: “let us hope that Mr. Potter will always be around to save the day.” and to his surprise, Daniel came back with “don’t worry, I will be” without skipping a beat.
- Jason actually auditioned to play Gilderoy Lockhart, he did not want to play another villain in a children’s movie.
- Luscious is a racist and he’s just a small pathetic man, as all racists are (cough dig at a few world leaders right now cough)
Victor Millette
At his panel, Sir Patrick Stewart talked a lot about his pet Pitbull Ginger, that he had to give up because she’s a banned breed in England. He shared his disagreements with these so called “dangerous dogs” bans, including the one we unfortunately have in Montreal, reminding us that the dangerous people are typically the owners and not the dogs themselves. Mr. Stewart also shared his displeasure at the Brexit vote and was visibly upset with the undercurrents of racism and nationalism that are running free and wild lately, in the UK, France, and the United States. He also fawned over Ian McKellan a bit, which was delightful.
Victor Millette
Nathan Fillion was the last panel of the weekend and he talked so much about Firefly and Castle and his adoration for Joss Whedon! He’s a great storyteller and had the room completely enthralled.
Firefly was about not the family you’re born into but the one you choose
Nathan would love to reboot Greatest American Hero and play the lead.
In other incredible news, a Dr. Horrible sequel is definitely in the works and it will totally happen one day, just probably not anyime soon.
Hasti Namaki for The Game Of Nerds
The only panel that I did not get a chance to attend but that I will mention is the Doctor Who panel with David, Alex & Freema. It looks like it was a blast for Who fans and I’m sorry I failed you by not being there but I had to go be with my favourite Gilmore Girl, Yanic Truesdale…but here’s a pic!
Victor Millette
See y’all next year (where maybe there will be more women and women of colour headlining their own panels)!
Hey Salut, j’suis tombé sur ton article par tout hasard, et je voulais te dire merci pour le crédit photo. Cependant, la plupart des photos n’ont pas été prise par moi. En fait, il n’y a que la jeune fille avec le lightsaber. Ce n’est pas très dérangeant pour moi, mais voila, je n’ai malheureusement aucune idée qui à pris quel photo puisque je suis le seul a l’avoir indiqué dans les commentaires sur leur page Facebook