Typically donning a backwards cap pouring coffee in a small town in Connecticut, Luke Danes of “Gilmore Girls” is spending his weekend in Louisville.
Scott Patterson – and other actors from video games, TV and movies – will be at PopCon.
The pop culture convention is in Louisville this weekend, June 16 through 18, at the Kentucky Expo Center. Carl Doninger, co-owner of PopCon, is thrilled for the convention’s first year in Louisville.
“The biggest, flashiest thing is always our celebrities,” Doninger said. “The voice actors do very well at our popcorn events because it's difficult to point at a voice and whatever show that you're watching when you get to meet them. It's amazing to see the fans meeting their favorite voice actors.”
Other celebrities include actors and voice actors from “The Walking Dead,” “MyHeroAcademia,” “Red Dead Redemption II,” and more.
Doninger said it’s exciting to see the months of hard work come together. PopCon is hosting its 10th year in Indianapolis.
“It requires a lot of effort. It is a year round effort,” Doninger said. “We have to contract celebrities many, many, many months in advance. Hotel contracts, flights. There's just so much that goes into working with the facility themselves. Space planning for all the vendors, vendor management. It's a heck of an ordeal. So it's nice to see it come to fruition this weekend. It'll be a lot of fun.”
Attendees can participate in Nerf Wars, watch magic shows or adventure through escape rooms. To kick off Louisville’s Pride weekend, PopCon has a drag show planned for Friday evening.
There is also a cafe experience with Dreamland Maids, a live anime group based in Los Angeles, California.
“It's a pretty big entity that 's based around anime and they perform while you are being served food,” Doninger said. “This year is the first time that we're working with them, but we're also putting them at their desk right in the middle of the vendor floor. So they want people to be watching their performances. It's going to be something really neat.”
Daily admission costs start at $30. Weekend admission starts at $60. There are also superfan and family packages available.