Adassa from Disney's 'Encanto,' pro wrestlers and others to appear at Savannah Comic Con

Get ready to geek out this weekend at the Savannah Comic Con, the “premiere Pop Culture event of Southeastern Georgia.” Expect two jam-packed days of vendors, special guests, music and more.

This is the ninth iteration of Savannah Comic Con and the event has shown tremendous growth since its modest early days.

“With the popularity of the Marvel movies and just nerd culture in general, we’ve seen attendance grow from a few hundred the first few years to some 10,000 now,” said Grady Martin, Savannah Comic Con’s promoter and Media Specialist. “It’s definitely grown a lot. The fanbase and the fandom are getting way bigger.”

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Burgeoning nerd culture encompasses families, crossover fans

As nerd culture has become more mainstream, the demographics of comic con attendees has also evolved.

“We’re seeing more entire families coming out,” said Martin. “Parents and kids are coming out and enjoying it together. It’s become more mainstream, so you’re starting to see more casual fans which helps everything grow.”

Besides shopping for comics, art, and merchandise from the wide variety of vendors, there will be plenty of other activities for the whole family including exotic animals from Cool Zoo Wildlife Conservation, pet adoption from Renegade Paws Rescue, interview and discussion panels with guest artists and voice actors, and cosplay contests.

There are also live music performances from violinist Johanna Moresco of dark synth-wave band The Cruxshadows, and from guitarist Aidan Fisher, who provided the hot Metallica licks for Eddie Munson on Stranger Things.

Pro wrestling is always a big part of Savannah Comic Con, which makes sense because wrestlers are basically real-life super-human action figures. Past events have featured wrestling superstars like Kurt Angle and Sgt. Slaughter. This year includes live wrestling and legendary special guests Jake “The Snake” Roberts and Rikishi.

“You have people in the industry that have been such huge crossover successes like The Rock,” said Grady. “It was beneficial when we had Kevin Nash. He was also in Ninja Turtles and Magic Mike and has done movies, as well. When you bring those folks in and realize how many people love professional wrestling as well, the overlap is way bigger than people realize.”

Meet Adassa and hear her sing from 'Encanto'

Disney fans are in for a treat this year as one of Savannah Comic Con’s headlining guests is Latina pop singer and actor Adassa, who voiced the character Dolores in the smash hit Encanto.

Adassa is considered the Crown Princess of reggaeton and has performed with the likes of Pitbull, Daddy Yankee, and Flo Rida, but the breakout success of Encanto’s Billboard #1 hit song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” has earned Adassa a whole new audience. Like the infectious “Let It Go” from Frozen, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” reached a wide audience and was inescapable for awhile.

Savannah Comic Con attendees will get to meet and hear Adassa sing the song in person.

“I’m excited to go because I like to dress up as the character so people can get the feeling of being in that moment in Encanto,” said Adassa over the phone. “I hope every body comes out. I can’t wait to see [everyone] in person and sing a little bit.”

Encanto almost didn’t happen for Adassa. After a rough bout of COVID, Adassa experienced a mysterious case of long COVID symptoms that included temporary paralysis right when she received the Disney role.

“It was a true miracle,” said Adassa. “I believe in God and I believe God saved me for a purpose. It was a moment where I was paralyzed from the neck down. I couldn’t really speak; I would stutter. That happened during the period of when I got my callback. When I got the part I was recuperating and didn’t know if I would be 100 percent. Thankfully now, it’s been a miracle and I feel better than ever. Weirdly enough, when they told me Dolores was going to be a soft-spoken character, I had been very soft spoken for a while so I knew how to get into that character.”

As a mother of seven, naturally her children freaked out when she got the role of a Disney character.

“They were so excited,” exclaimed Adassa. “Do you know how hard it is to keep kids from telling a secret? It is so difficult. When they were finally able to tell it, they were so scared. I was like, ‘You can tell your friends now,’ and they were like, 'But you said we should NOT tell them.' I actually had the fortune of my daughter, who was about to turn 8, she was cast in the film as well. We both were able to be in the film together, so for us it’s definitely a family affair. Even at the comic cons I like to take my kids individually to experience the world of being at a conventions and meeting other voice over talents.”

One of the reasons to come to comic cons is for collectables, and Adassa has her share of Encanto memorabilia including the first Dolores doll off of the production line.

“I have quite a bit, but on top of that I have some fan-made art,” said Adassa. “I have my own Funko pop made by a fan. I love it when the fans bring me something they created because they used their own artistry to create an art dedicated to the film that we all love.”

After the success of Encanto, Adassa is ready to continue her music career with a new direction into Christian music.

“I am a Latina, so I’m always mixing the styles of who I am and in this one, I’m just giving praise to our Heavenly Father for saving my life and have my faith showcased in my music,” said Adassa. “I’m really excited for this new wave in my musical career.”

Adassa’s new album, “In Jesus, We Are One,” with Shadow Mountain will be available in August.

“We’re trying to catch everyone’s interests, from your mom and dad to somebody who loves anime or cosplay,” added Martin. “We have a little bit of everything. Bring the whole family along.”

If You Go >>

What: Savannah Comic Con 2023

When: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., July 29, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., July 30

Where: Savannah Convention Center, 1 International Drive

Cost: $15 and up

Info: savannahcomiccon.com

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Disney Encanto Adassa headlines Savannah Comic Con