Terminator, Star Trek Franchise Fans Get Big Boosts with Celebrity Additions at FAN EXPO New Orleans

2024-04-29 10:59:07 Art & Entertainment

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Already brimming with guests from the science fiction world, FAN EXPO New Orleans took another leap into the future (or perhaps the past?) with the additions of several standouts from two of the most iconic genre franchises at the convention, January 5-7 at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, as announced today.

From The Terminator, Michael Biehn and Lance Henriksen from the original 1984 film will be joined by Robert Patrick and Edward Furlong from the sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day, as well as the previously announced star of both, Linda Hamilton, making this one of the most significant ?Terminator? reunions ever.

And as far as sci-fi universes go, it?s hard to beat ?Star Trek? for variety and longevity, and FAN EXPO New Orleans brings several of the iterations together, adding Michelle Hurd (?Star Trek: Picard?) and Jonathan Frakes (?Star Trek: The Next Generation,? among others) to a roster that already includes Sonequa Martin-Green (?Star Trek: Discovery?).

And rounding out today?s announcement is Juliette Lewis, currently a regular on the Showtime drama ?Yellowjackets? and a veteran of more than 100 movies and TV shows.

Biehn, best known for his role as ?Kyle Reese,? sent back through time to defeat the Terminator character in the eponymous film, went on to star in other James Cameron movies Aliens and The Abyss, launching a career that has seen him appear in hits like Navy Seals, K2 and Tombstone opposite Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer and Sam Elliott.

Henriksen co-starred in The Terminator as LAPD police officer ?Vukovich,? but he?d already acted in more than 20 TV shows and films, from Close Encounters of the Third Kind to The Right Stuff to ?The A Team.? His roles got bigger following his turn as Vukovich, and the prolific Henriksen has been in more than 250 productions, most recently the Sundance selection ?Bring on the Dancing Horses.?

Patrick took his turn as the ?bad guy? (or ?bad android?) ?T-1000? in Judgment Day, earning accolades including Saturn Award and MTV Movie Award nominations for the portrayal. It was the first significant role in a career that has spanned five decades and shows no signs of slowing down, as he has been seen in no fewer than six productions in 2023, notably the Paramount+ original ?1923? and Netflix drama series ?The Night Agent.?

Furlong has long been a convention favorite of fans, for many because of his young ?John Connor? portrayal in Judgment Day, which represented his acting debut, and for his dozens of other parts in films like Detroit Rock City, American History X and The Green Hornet, spanning youth and adult roles. The personable Furlong plays the lead character ?Billy? opposite Shelley Duvall and Dee Wallace in this year?s feature horror film The Forest Hills.

Hurd has appeared in a wide array of films and TV shows, from sci-fi hits like ?Star Trek: Picard? (as ?Raffi Musiker?) to dramas like ?Blindspot? to network series ?90210,? ?Gossip Girl? and ?ER,? on which she had recurring roles, as well as longer runs on ?Leap Years? and ?Law & Order: SVU.?

Frakes has made ?Will Riker? one of the most iconic characters in the ?Star Trek? universe, bringing him up the ranks all the way to Commander from ?TNG? through the current Paramount+ series ?Picard.? Frakes has directed more than 75 episodes in and out of ?Trek,? and appeared as an actor in everything from his first role as ?Tom Carroll? on the classic soap opera ?The Doctors? through to this year?s Hallmark holiday film A Biltmore Christmas.

Lewis first caught the attention of the entertainment world as a teen star in ?I Married Dora,? National Lampoon?s Christmas Vacation and Cape Fear, parlaying that early success into dozens of memorable roles. Her current run as ?Natalie? in ?Yellowjackets? has earned her Hollywood Critics Association and other award nominations.

This impressive group of newcomers are now part of a standout celebrity field at FAN EXPO New Orleans that, in addition to Hamilton and Martin-Green, boasts the Lord of the Rings ?four hobbits? Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan, plus Bruce Campbell (The Evil Dead, ?Burn Notice?), Danny Trejo (Machete, The Book of Boba Fett), the "Daredevil" tandem of Charlie Cox and Vincent D'Onofrio, Katee Sackhoff (Star Wars? ?The Mandalorian?), Jon Bernthal (?The Punisher,? ?The Walking Dead?), Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy, ?Avengers: Infinity War?), the ?Charmed? duo of Holly Marie Combs and Rose McGowan, Peter Cullen (Transformers), Jason Lee (Vanilla Sky, Almost Famous), Peter Weller (RoboCop, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension), Felicia Day (?The Guild,? ?Supernatural?) and many others. Fans can see the full list of celebrities at fanexpohq.com/fanexponeworleans/celebrities.