“Wild Things,” Superheroes, Burton, Jonze, “Twilight” and Freaks Ready for 40th Comic-Con

A scene from Matthew Vaughn’s “Kick-Ass.” Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

Friday morning, Warner Bros.’ sneak peaks will include a look at Spike Jonze’s “Where the Wild Things Are.” The makers of Focus Features’ “Coraline” will be on hand to talk about the making of the animated feature that premiered this year to excellent response. Jim Caviezel (“The Passion of the Christ”) stars in an update to the cult-classic TV series “The Prisoner,” premiering on AMC this season, which will preview at Comic-Con. Disney’s animation panel will include a rare appearance in the United States from Oscar-winning director Hayao Miyazaki, who will be in San Diego to talk about the English-language release of his hit film “Ponyo.”  As the New York Times pointed out last week, Miyazaki did not even attend the Academy Awards ceremony that gave him his best animated feature win for “Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi” (2001) . That article goes on to quote UC Berkeley professor Duncan Williams explaining his aversion of the States by saying, “I think he has an image of the United States as a culture that isn’t that helpful to the world.” The afternoon will include an inside look at Focus Features’ animated film “9,” directed by Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov.

Saturday gets underway with “Lost” creators Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse will hold a discussion on the final installment of “Lost,” while in the afternoon, Miramax will provide a first look at their new Mike Judge film, “Extract,” which stars Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis, and Kristen Wiig. In the evening, Kevin Smith will address the masses. There will also be a panel for Sundance alum “Black Dynamite,” which will be getting a release from Sony Pictures October 16.

All day Sunday, the San Diego International Children’s Film Festival will be presented in conjunction with Comic-Con.  Overture Pictures’ “Paper Heart,” another Sundance alum, will have a panel in the afternoon with the film’s star Charlyne Yi. Sunday will end with a screening of the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” musical episode.

The entire Comic-Con schedule can be found on the event’s website.