After four days of star-studded panels, movie premieres, and inside TV scoops, Comic-Con 2011 drew to a close Sunday night. The convention has a history of breaking big entertainment news, and this year's festival was no exception. What are the stories everyone's talking about this year? Here are six:
1. The Twilight sex scene
Roughly 6,500 fans responded to a seven-minute preview of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — which included footage of the first sex scene between Robert Pattinson's Edward and Kristen Stewart's Bella — with "a wave of whoops," says Natalie Finn at E! Online. It was a "steamy sneak peek," says Kara Warner at MTV, leaving fans who had been anticipating the pivotal moment in the Twilight series quite satisfied. (See part of the panel.)
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2. Glee's casting backtrack
Breathe easy, Glee fans. Despite what the show's co-creator, Ryan Murphy, said in an interview two weeks ago, stars Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, and Chris Colfer will not be leaving the show at the end of next season. "I don't know where that reporter got that information," Glee co-creator Brad Falchuk said at Comic-Con, as quoted by HitFix. "Just because they're graduating doesn't mean they're leaving show." Actor Chord Overstreet, however, who last season played the goofy, blonde teen Sam, will officially not be returning, having turned down a contract to appear in only 10 of next season's episodes.
3. The skirmish at the Spider-Man panel
Art imitating life? Actor Rhys Ifans, who plays supervillain The Lizard in The Amazing Spider-Man, caused a bit of trouble of his own after the film's Comic-Con panel Friday. According to USA Today, after a member of his entourage was refused entrance for one of the festival's events, he became "abusive, belligerent, and aggressive, and shoved a female security guard." The guard put him under citizen's arrest, and Ifans was issued a citation for misdemeanor battery.
4. The first taste of the Total Recall remake
Even though the film is still only midway through shooting, the stars of the Total Recall remake (the original 1990 film starred Arnold Schwarzenegger) delighted attendees not only by showing up to promote the movie (Watch part of the panel here), but by bringing along exclusive footage. The short clip, which showed star Colin Farrell in action, was only a rough cut, but the crowd was "hungry for sneak peeks," says Josh Rottenberg at Entertainment Weekly, and "ate it up."
5. Peter Jackson's cameo
Peter Jackson disappointed fans when he announced that he would not be attending Comic-Con to promote The Hobbit. So when he made a surprise appearance at the Adventures of Tintin panel, which he produced, he "took San Diego Comic-Con by storm," says Terri Schwartz at MTV. Sitting alongside director Steven Spielberg (See their panel appearance), he debuted footage from the upcoming motion-capture film. The two "flat-out entertained the adoring crowd by being regular, good-natured Joes," says Natalie Finn at E! Online.
6. The Cowboys and Aliens premiere
Harrison Ford may be 69, but he's still one of Hollywood's greatest action stars. His new film, Cowboys and Aliens, which co-stars James Bond himself, Daniel Craig, debuted at Comic-Con Saturday, receiving a standing ovation. (View the trailer.) "This is Ford's best work in a long time," says Luke Y Thompson at Deadline. The film sounds "kooky on paper," says Kurt Honeycutt at the Hollywood Reporter, but "on screen, cowboys and aliens make beautiful, fun music together."
Sources: Deadline, E! Online (2), Entertainment Weekly,MTV (2), HitFix, Hollywood Reporter, USA Today
