23 reasons to love D23
D23 Expo — the biannual Disney convention held in Anaheim, California — is where every gender, race, creed, species and level of fandom combines as one.
Here are 23 reasons why it’s the center of the Disney universe.
1. You will see Filipino males dressed as Snow White, American seniors dressed as Captain America (or Captain Hook) riding golf carts, a Latino couple as Ant-Man and The Wasp, Japanese girls going full Simba, a little kid doing an amazing Doctor Strange impression with full goatee and portal-opening moves, and a dude walking around as Han Solo trapped in carbonite.
And of course, Fat Thor.
2. If all the world were as united as D23, there might be peace and harmony on the planet.
3. Every two years, Anaheim becomes ground zero for hundreds of thousands of Disney fans who take over the convention center with Disney panel discussions, Marvel signings, Star Wars fan moments, as throngs of people in a galaxy of costumes encompassing princesses and princes, villains, cartoon characters, Muppets and superheroes hit the floors.
Hulk out: Exclusive Marvel and Star Wars exhibits and great merch are just two reasons to check out D23. Fat Thor(right)
4. It’s been around for a decade, and just keeps getting bigger.
5. FYI: The “D” stands for Disney, the “23” for 1923, the year Walt Disney founded the company.
6. The fans are the reason D23 is such a big hit. It’s an ever-expanding nova of cosplayers, collectible hunters and those just jonesing for cutting-edge reveals on Frozen II, Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker and Marvel Phase Four.
Fans come in all shapes, sizes, races, genders and ages at D23.
7. Celebrity sightings. Fans come in droves to watch the “Disney Legends” awardees such as…
8. A triumphant (but still a little naughty) Robert Downey Jr. who thanked Disney and reminisced about getting kicked out of the theme park as a youth for toking up at the Gondola ride.
9. Former Mouseketeer Christina Aguilera belted her lungs out, and told us “Disney is my life’s work.”
Snow White, Russell from Up
10. Jon Favreau, James Earl Jones, Bette Midler, Ming Na-Wen, Diane Sawyer, Hans Zimmer, Imagineer Wing T. Chao, choreographer Kenny Ortega and others got their handprints and signatures officially enshrined at Walt Disney Studios in Burbank.
11. Surprise onstage appearances by Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Angelina Jolie, Ewan McGregor, Anna Kendrick, Michelle Pfeiffer, Tina Fey, Jaime Foxx, Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Diego Luna, Kristen Bell, Pedro Pascal, Dick Van Dyke and many others: way beyond cool.
12. The offical launch details of Disney’s streaming paltform Disney+ (See sidebar below).
13. Day 2 is the big earth-shaker for fans, when Disney Studios rolls out its upcoming studio releases, including Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm.
Angelina Jolie
14. Highly anticipated were the Marvel surprises (Wow! Kit Harington joining the cast of Marvel’s upcoming The Eternals, alongside Game of Thrones bro Richard Madden).
15. It was announced that Avengers: Endgame was officially the “biggest movie in history” with current worldwide box office grosses of $2.79 billion.
16. A tight-lipped Black Panther director Ryan Coogler was only willing to reveal a release date for the sequel: May 6, 2022. “I’m working on it, trying to give fans something special,” he said. We’ll wait, Ryan.
Robert Downey, Jr.
17. That jaw-dropping poster for Rise of Skywalker — featuring Rey and Kylo Ren squaring off with lightsabers against an ominous Palpatine sky. Whoo-hoo!
18. That Rise of Skywalker trailer that had people scraping up what was left of their blown minds from laptop screens.
19. Inside the D23 Pavilion, we saw an amazing exhibit of Disney’s costumes (“Heroes and Villains”), including Oscar-winning designs by Colleen Atwood, Eduardo Castro, Sandy Powell and many others who’ve dressed up everyone from Mary Poppins to Jack Sparrow.
Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt
20. The “Imagining Tomorrow, Today” booth, which previewed new Epcot Experience upgrades next year, an interactive Avengers Academy attraction to open in Disney World and Disneyland Paris, and an amazing Star Wars-themed Galactic Starcruiser two-day hotel experience for the whole family to open at Disney World next year. (Travel in space!!!)
21. Exclusive collectibles to drool over offered at the Disney Dream Store (with lines typically snaking around the block).
22. A mesmerizing “Disney on Broadway” 25th anniversary show hosted by Tony winner Gavin Lee that celebrated Disney’s best stage musical moments.
23. A special Mickey Mouse art exhibit (he turned 90 this year, FYI).
Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker poster reveal.
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For more D23 moments, search #D23Expo. Visit https://www.philstar.com/lifestyle/travel-and-tourism/2019/08/29/1947416/d23-center-disney-universe
