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The biggest news at Comic-Con, from ‘Black Panther’ to ‘Spaceballs’
Brendan MorrowUSA TODAY
July 28, 2026, 12:36 p.m. ET
SAN DIEGO – Just when you thought this year’s San Diego Comic-Con was a bit quiet for entertainment news, Ryan Gosling said, “Hold my flaming beer.”
Marvel bookended its blockbuster Comic-Con panel on July 25 with a pair of bombshell announcements: Gosling is joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe to play his dream role, and we have a new Black Panther
The two reveals were by far the most significant news to come out of the four-day convention in San Diego, though the rest of the weekend was peppered with first looks and tidbits about some highly anticipated films and TV shows, not to mention Johnny Depp crashing the party to tease his return to Hollywood
Here’s all the news you may have missed out of San Diego Comic-Con 2026
Ryan Gosling is the new Ghost Rider
If superhero fatigue is a thing, you wouldn’t know it from being in the room during Marvel’s absolutely raucous Hall H panel, as thousands of fans cheered, screamed and donned Doctor Doom masks
Those fans completely lost their minds just a few minutes in when Gosling was unveiled as the MCU’s Ghost Rider, the flaming motorcycle rider previously portrayed by Nicolas Cage. “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Star Wars: Starfighter” filmmaker Shawn Levy was revealed as the director of “Ghost Rider,” which opens in 2028
New Black Panther revealed as David Jonsson
That would have been enough for the crowd to leave satisfied, but the panel ended with an equally jaw-dropping reveal: David Jonsson will be the new Black Panther in “Black Panther III,” playing the son of Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa who was introduced at the end of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” Ryan Coogler’s back behind the director’s chair for “Black Panther III,” which is set for a December 2028 release
Marvel notably opted against the more detailed Comic-Con presentation that it has done in some years, laying out many movies years into the future. There was also no news about an “X-Men” cast like some fans had speculated, though perhaps Disney’s upcoming D23 event will be the place for that
‘Blade Runner 2099,’ ‘Matchbox: The Movie,’ ‘Carrie,’ and more get first trailers
A number of trailers premiered during Comic-Con panels but were also immediately released online for all to see, one of the most intriguing being “Blade Runner 2099.” Prime Video shared a first look at the series set in the world of Ridley Scott’s sci-fi classic. It takes place fifty years after “Blade Runner 2049” in a future where replicants are in control and stars Hunter Schafer as a fugitive who teams up with a dying replicant, played by Michelle Yeoh. The show premieres Nov. 25
Apple TV+, meanwhile, revealed its new “Neuromancer” TV series based on William Gibson’s sci-fi novel and also dropped a trailer for John Cena’s “Matchbox The Movie,” an action-comedy based on the Matchbox toys about a group of friends who get drawn into an international adventure. During Apple’s panel, Cena discussed doing his own stunts and being “scared for my life.”
Other trailers that rolled out during the convention include “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” Season 3, teasing Jamie Campbell Bower’s debut as Galadriel’s husband, Celeborn; the DC series “Lanterns“; the new “Avatar: The Last Airbender” series “Avatar: Seven Havens“; and “Carrie,” the show based on Stephen King’s book. Mike Flanagan, creator of “Carrie,” sat down with USA TODAY to discuss casting Summer H. Howell in the lead role and explain why the show will be a dramatic departure from the book and 1976 movie.
Johnny Depp surprises at Comic-Con, reveals his take on Ebenezer Scrooge
Christmas came early when Johnny Depp surprised attendees by showing up unannounced at the end of a totally unrelated panel: There was no indication the hourlong discussion with directors Zach Cregger, John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein hosted by Collider would have anything to do with Depp, but he came on stage at the end to debut his take on Ebenezer Scrooge from the movie “Ebenezer.”
The trailer for “Ebenezer” also dropped, showing off more of Depp’s version of the “A Christmas Carol” curmudgeon and serving as a meta celebration of the return of Depp himself
New ‘Star Trek’ movie, ‘Weapons’ prequel about Aunt Gladys get updates
Depp’s appearance generated most of the headlines out of that Collider “Directors on Directing” event, but there was also some news from the panel itself: Zach Cregger discussed his upcoming prequel to “Weapons,” focused on Amy Madigan’s villainous Aunt Gladys
Cregger said that while he wanted to keep the character “opaque and mysterious” in “Weapons,” there’s “an amazing story to be told about where Gladys comes from, and how she became what we know her as.” The movie is currently being written and is “moving in the right direction,” he said
Directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein also teased their upcoming “Star Trek” movie, the franchise’s first new film in over a decade. “People will be surprised” by the movie, which is now being written and won’t focus on established “Star Trek” characters, Daley teased. It will also take place “further into the future than we’ve been before,” per Goldstein
Josh Gad says ‘Spaceballs 2’ is a ‘love letter’ to John Candy, reveals his role
The “Spaceballs: The New One” panel was a joyous celebration of the return of Rick Moranis, who got a standing ovation after popping up in the crowd wearing his Dark Helmet mask. The comedy sequel marks Moranis’ first movie in 20 years
A hilarious conversation with the cast included shots at Marvel and plenty of nostalgia, and while details about the movie itself were scarce, star and cowriter Josh Gad did drop a bit of news: He shot down speculation that he will be playing Barf, John Candy’s character from the original “Spaceballs,” in the movie. Instead, he’s playing a new mawg, the same species as Candy’s character
“Part of the conceit of this movie was I wanted it to be a love letter to John [Candy],” Gad said. “John is one of my biggest idols. I want to put rumors to rest: I am not playing Barf in this movie, OK? That is a role that is singularly played, and will ever be played, by one person.”
