EW partners with E3 for live virtual gaming conference

Entertainment Weekly is coming to E3 in a big way this year.

EW has partnered with the virtual gaming conference to bring fans panels that dive into hard-hitting topics in the gaming world, as well as exclusive one-on-one interviews with noted filmmakers behind some of the most highly anticipated movies.

Moderated by EW's Editor-in-Chief Mary Margaret, Young Entrepreneurs in Gaming will feature a discussion of — you guessed it — young entrepreneurs in gaming between Evil Geniuses CEO Nicole LaPointe Jameson, Queens Gaming Collective's head of talent strategy Taylor Heitzig-Rhodes, weThink CEO Katrina Salazar, and G2 esports' head of creators Brittani Johnson.

The panel is part of a series at E3 called Voices of E3 that highlight various topics, including diversity, accessibility, video game development, video game voice acting, and the evolution of video game media.

EW's Christian Holub will lead the Voices of E3 panel Real World Game Worlds: When news and movements reach our games. The roster of panelists will highlight screenwriter Gary Whitta (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), Thought Pennies' Chief Creative Officer Daniel Erikson, video game writer and narrative designer Rhianna Pratchett (Heavenly Sword, Tomb Raider), and Netflix's narrative designer Juan Vaca.

In addition, EW's Nick Romano (yours truly) will host exclusive interviews with filmmakers Shawn Levy and Jordan Vogt-Roberts.

Alan Markfield/20th Century Studios; Sunrise; Mike Marsland/WireImage EW sets exclusive interviews with directors Shawn Levy and Jordan Vogt-Roberts at E3.

A producer of several shows, including Stranger Things, Shadow and Bone, and Last Man Standing, Levy now dives into the world of video games as the director of the movie Free Guy. Starring Ryan Reynolds and Jodie Comer, the film sees a goofy NPC (non-playable character) of a popular video game become self-aware and realize he's not a real person like he thought. Joe Keery, Taika Waititi, Utkarsh Ambudkar, and Lil Rel Howery also star.

Vogt-Roberts, who has graced the E3 stage before in conversation with Kojima Productions founder Hideo Kojima, returns to the conference virtually to discuss everything from his love of gaming, to directing the Metal Gear Solid movie starring Oscar Isaac as Solid Snake, to his work on the upcoming live-action Gundam movie set up at Netflix.

Fans can register at E3's website to gain access to the E3 2021 online portal and app, though full-length versions of EW's panels can also be viewed directly on EW.com.

Hosted by Alex "Goldenboy" Mendez, Jacki Jing, and Greg Miller, the E3 2021 broadcast will feature major publisher showcases, press conferences, industry panels, extended livestreams, special celebrity guest appearances, and more.

Highlights from the schedule, which kicks off Saturday, June 12, can be found below.

Voices of E3 panels

• A roundtable discussing how games media acts and reacts in the current sphere of commentary with Editors-in-Chief from Games Industry.biz, GameSpot, IGN, PC Gamer, and Polygon.

• Nerdist’s Dan Casey hosts a session with the cast of the gaming-development focused TV series Mythic Quest.

• A conversation with legendary women of video game voice acting including Courtenay Taylor (Mass Effect, Fallout 4, Call of Duty), Anjali Bhimani (Overwatch, Apex Legends, Fallout 4: Nuka World), Jennifer Hale (Mass Effect, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, Overwatch), Carolina Ravassa (Overwatch, Valorant, GTA5), and Krizia Bajos (Sims4, League of Legends, Casagrandes).

• Insights from streaming leaders including Zack "ZackTTG" Mowery (100 Thieves), Fiona Nova (G4, RoosterTeeth), Jay-Ann Lopez (Black Girl Gamers) and Tanya DePass (I Need Diverse Games) about representation in games and empowering black voices.

Saturday, June 12

• Broadcast pre-show starts at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET.

• E3 2021 will kick off with press conferences from Ubisoft and Gearbox Entertainment, as well as a session with GamesBeat.

Sunday, June 13

• Broadcast pre-show starts at 8:45 a.m. PT/11:45 a.m. ET.

• Microsoft’s long-awaited Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase will take place starting at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET.

• Fans can also look forward to special presentations from SQUARE ENIX, the PC Gaming Show and the Future Games Show.

• Warner Bros. Games & Back4Blood and 24 Entertainment will also be featured.

Monday, June 14

• Broadcast pre-show starts at 8:00 a.m. PT / 11:00 a.m. ET.

• Alongside press conferences from several indie developers, presentations from Take-Two Interactive, Mythical Games, Freedom Games, Razer and Capcom will take place throughout the day.

• Verizon and Intellivision will also be featured, along with a session with VENN.

Tuesday, June 15

• Broadcast pre-show starts at 8:00 a.m. PT/11:00 a.m. ET.

• The last day of E3 will include Nintendo’s Nintendo Direct and Nintendo Treehouse: Live programming starting at 9 a.m. PT/12 p.m. ET.

• BANDAI NAMCO, Yooreka Games, and GameSpot will also have focused events.

• The broadcast will round out with the Official E3 2021 Awards Show.

Related content:

• League of Legends is getting an animated event series at Netflix — watch the first action-packed teaser

• Watch T-Pain get his revenge on racist Call of Duty players

• Jimmy Fallon makes Twitch debut playing a frantic game of Among Us with Stranger Things stars