San Diego Comic-Con 2017 took place at the San Diego convention center Wednesday, July 19 through Sunday, July 23. Follow along as we recount our experience at SDCC 2017!
After the Battlestar Galactica Reunion panel wrapped up in Ballroom 20 on Thursday, July 20, it was 3:30pm, so we decided to head over to Hall H for the Netflix panel featuring the films Death Note and Bright. The panel was scheduled 3:15pm-4:30pm, so we missed the portion of the panel dedicated to Death Note. They were just finishing up as we walked in the room at 3:45pm (Hall H was a walk in at this point). Terry Crews was the moderator.
The Netflix film Bright is directed by David Ayer, and stars Will Smith, Joel Edgerton, Noomi Rapace, Lucy Fry, Edgar Ramirez, Eric Newman, and Bryan Unkeless, all of which were in attendance. We got to see the trailer for the film a couple times during the panel, which shows Will Smith working as a beat cop in Los Angeles. However, there is a big thing to point out—there are a lot of fantasy characters living in this world. Will Smith described the film as “Training Day meets Lord of the Rings.” In the trailer, we see this is pretty evident with Will Smith beating a fairy out of his bird feeder, while at the same time we see orcs being a lower class in society. Joel Edgerton plays Will Smith’s new partner, who is an orc. We also learned from the panel that Elves seem to run things in Los Angeles, being the “one percents,” while humans are the middle race.
David Ayer talked about this film being a commentary on social structures we have today, but without beating us over the head with it. We also learned some lore about the movie—there are magic wands, which humans are unable to handle without being obliterated.
David Ayer and Will Smith had nothing but praise for working with Netflix as well. They discussed how working with Netflix, they were given all the resources they needed to work on this film, and were allowed to film in Los Angeles to give a more authentic feel to the movie. Much of the cast also talked about how authentic it felt, as some of the scenes for film were really great looking but at the same time kind of grungy and gross.
We also saw another clip of what appeared to be elves trying to take out Will Smith and Joel Edgerton’s characters at a gas station. There is a big gun fight that breaks out, along with some fisticuffs.
The panel took some audience questions, which reiterated a lot that was already discussed, like the social structures, asking about the film’s influences, how it was working with Netflix, and David Ayer working with Will Smith.
The movie comes out on Netflix on December 22nd and it looks to be pretty interesting. Seeing some social commentary mixed with a fantasy genre, in a gritty format, looks like it could be a good watch. With talent like David Ayer, who has a pretty good track record, I have high hopes for this being a good film.
Next up in Hall H was The Nerdist panel with Chris Hardwick. Click here for our recap and photos of that panel!
In the meantime, you can view more photos from the Bright panel below.
I hadn’t heard of this! Sounds like a great cast and fun movie!