D23 Expo
D23 Expo, since 2024 officially titled D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event, is the biennial fan convention presented by D23: The Official Disney Fan Club at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, a short distance from Disneyland Resort. Over a long weekend the event brings together every major part of The Walt Disney Company — film and television studios, animation, theme parks, consumer products, publishing and the Walt Disney Archives — for presentations, panels, exhibitions, concerts and shopping aimed at the company's most committed fans.[1] It is widely treated as Disney's equivalent of a comic convention, and its largest presentations are routinely the source of the company's biggest film and theme park announcements.
History
D23 itself was launched on March 10, 2009, as the first official fan community in Disney's history. The name combines the initial of Disney with 23, a reference to 1923, the year Walt Disney founded his Hollywood studio.[2] The convention was announced as the new club's flagship benefit, open to the general public as well as to members, who received discounted admission.
The first D23 Expo ran from September 10 to 13, 2009, at the Anaheim Convention Center and drew close to 40,000 attendees over four days.[3] From the outset it included the Disney Legends Awards ceremony, which had previously been held on Disney property, alongside studio presentations, Archives exhibitions and a show floor of pavilions run by the company's divisions.
The Expo settled into a two-year rhythm, returning to Anaheim in 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019, generally in the summer and generally over three days. The edition planned for 2021 was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the event instead returned from September 9 to 11, 2022, where it served as the public launch of Disney100, the company's centenary celebration.[4] That postponement shifted the cycle to even-numbered years.
For the eighth edition, held from August 9 to 11, 2024, Disney dropped the word "Expo" and restyled the event D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event.[5] Most attendees and press continue to call it the D23 Expo. Related fan events have also been staged internationally, beginning with an Expo in Japan in 2013 and continuing with a first Brazilian edition in São Paulo in November 2024.
Presentations
The convention is anchored by a small number of very large presentations. The Disney Legends Awards Ceremony, honouring individuals who have made a significant contribution to the company, traditionally opens the event. Studio showcases follow for Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, Disney Live Action, Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm, mixing executive announcements with trailers, footage and appearances by filmmakers and cast members. A separate showcase covers Disney Experiences, the division responsible for the theme parks, resorts and cruise line, and it is usually the presentation of greatest interest to parks fans, since new attractions, lands and ships are frequently announced there first.
In earlier editions these presentations were held in Hall D23, a venue of roughly 6,900 seats created inside the convention centre. In 2024 the three marquee evening showcases — Entertainment, Experiences and the Legends Ceremony — moved to the nearby Honda Center arena, substantially increasing their capacity, while panels and smaller presentations remained at the convention centre.[6]
Beyond the headline sessions, the schedule includes dozens of smaller panels on animation history, Imagineering, television, publishing, games and music, along with concerts and the Mousequerade costume contest, in which fans compete in Disney-inspired costume categories.
Show floor
Between presentations, attendees circulate on an exhibition floor divided into pavilions operated by Disney's divisions and by outside licensees and partners. The Walt Disney Archives stages a themed exhibition at each event, displaying costumes, props, artwork and attraction artefacts rarely shown in public. Other regular features include Imagineering displays with models and concept art, studio and streaming pavilions, and extensive retail, including event-exclusive merchandise and a marketplace of independent vendors.
Cosplay is prominent, and many attendees attend in costume. Because the largest presentations fill quickly, much of the practical experience revolves around reservations, queues and lotteries for seats and shopping, systems Disney has revised at nearly every edition.