Baltimore Comic-Con 2026 announces its First Guests: Frank Cho, Colleen Doran, Larry Hama, Louise Simonson, Walter Simonson, and Mark Waid
This year’s Baltimore Comic-Con will take place on September 25-27, 2026 at the Inner Harbor’s Baltimore Convention Center. To open the guest announcements for 2026, the Baltimore Comic-Con adds Frank Cho, Colleen Doran, Larry Hama, Louise Simonson, Walter Simonson, and Mark Waid to the 2026 event! You can purchase tickets to this year’s event now!
Ringo Award winner and Harvey and Eisner Award nominee Frank Cho launched his career as a comic strip artist at the University of Maryland-College Park student newspaper, penning University2, which was the predecessor of his creator-owned syndicated strip and comic series, Liberty Meadows. His body of work also includes Marvel Comics’ New Avengers, Mighty Avengers, Shanna the She-Devil, New Ultimates, and X-Men: Schism, as well as Jungle Girl for Dynamite Entertainment. His recent work can be seen on covers from DC’s Harley Quinn.
Colleen Doran is a New York Times bestselling cartoonist. From her first work on The Sandman, she also adapted the short stories Troll Bridge, Snow Glass Apples, and Chivalry, winning two Eisners, The Bram Stoker, Locus, and Ringo Awards, and nominations for Best Penciler/Inker Eisners, Reubens, the Excelsior, Rondo, and Tripwire Awards.
Other works include American Gods, Norse Mythology, and the adaptation of Good Omens with Terry Pratchett, at that time, the most successful comics crowdfund in Kickstarter history at over $3.1 million.
She taught Syrian refugees for the US Embassy and the Athens, Greece National Library, and contributed to Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds to benefit Ukrainian refugees. The project is an Eisner winner.
She’s illustrated works by Alan Moore, Margaret Atwood, Anne Rice, J Michael Straczynski, Neil Gaiman, Clive Barker, Amazing Fantastic Incredible Stan Lee, and graphic novels for The Doors, Blondie, Melissa Etheridge, and Tori Amos. In Balmain Dreams 10R, she created an original story for the French fashion house Balmain for designer Oliver Rousteing.
She’s had multiple solo shows at the Society of Illustrators, The Museum of Cartoon Art, and the San Diego Comic Con Museum. She’s also exhibited at shows in Milan, Rome, Portugal, and Germany.
Other credits: Action Comics, Conan, Detective Comics, Amazing Spider-Man, Captain America, Guardians of the Galaxy, Jessica Jones for Netflix, Marvel Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, The Vampire Diaries, and Wonder Woman.
Larry Hama is an Eisner Hall of Fame writer/artist/editor/actor who is best known as the writer of Marvel’s GI Joe and Wolverine comics in the ‘80s and ‘90s. Larry created and scripted Bucky O’Hare, which was a comic, an animated show, and toy line from Hasbro. He has also written, edited, or drawn for Avengers, Conan, Batman, Wonder Woman, X-Men, Spider-Man, and dozens more. His illustrations and cartoons have appeared in National Lampoon, Esquire, New York, and Rolling Stone. His most recent novel is The Death of Captain America, which was also released as an audio book. In comics, he has recently scripted Iron Fist/Heart of the Dragon for Marvel and Spy Hunter/Paper Boy for DC. He has also done layouts for Deathstroke, Damage, and Michael Cray at DC. He is currently writing GI Joe: A Real American Hero for Skybound. He is also an Inkpot Award winner, and an inductee in the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame.
As an actor, he has appeared on TV in M.A.S.H., SNL, and Another World. He originated the characters of Lord of the South and Lt. Williams in the 1976 B’Way production of Stephen Sondheim’s Pacific Overtures, and has done commercials and voice-overs.
Louise Simonson has, like her husband Walter, contributed significantly to the comic book industry. “Weezie”, as she is known, began her comics career as an editor at Warren Publishing before leaving for Marvel to edit titles including X-Men, New Mutants, and Star Wars. Departing the editorial role in favor of writing, Weezie has contributed to storylines in Marvel’s Marvel Team-Up, Web of Spider-Man, and Red Sonja, and was responsible for the introduction of Apocalypse in X-Factor as well as the launch of Power Pack. At DC Comics, she worked on Superman: The Man of Steel and The Adventures of Superman.
Walter Simonson has made vast contributions to comics publishing, as a writer, an artist, and even in founding publishing imprints. He was recognized in 2012 at the Harvey Awards in Special Award for Excellence in Production/Presentation and Best Domestic Reprint Project for Walt Simonson’s The Mighty Thor, Artist’s Edition from IDW, and in 2013 for Alien: The Illustrated Story from Titan Books for Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work. He also received the Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010 at the Harvey Awards. Walt’s career began in the 1970s at DC Comics, where he worked on titles such as Weird War Tales, Manhunter, Metal Men, Orion, Wonder Woman, Hawkgirl, Vigilante, and Hercules Unbound. Over at Marvel Comics, Simonson has had numerous noteworthy runs, including The Rampaging Hulk magazine, X-Factor, Fantastic Four, and Thor, on which he was responsible for the introduction of Beta Ray Bill and Thor as a frog.
The multiple Ringo, Harvey, and Eisner Award-winning Mark Waid has been the voice behind dozens of series that have resonated throughout comics fandom and the creative community alike. His more acclaimed runs include DC Comics’ The Flash, Kingdom Come, JLA: Year One, JLA, Legion of Super-Heroes, and Superman: Birthright, Marvel Comics’ Captain America, Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, The Indestructible Hulk, and Daredevil, BOOM! Studios’ Incorruptible and Irredeemable, Archie Comics’ Archie, and his creator-owned works Empire and Potter’s Field. He previously served as Publisher (U.S.) at Humanoids.
This year’s confirmed guests for the show include: Jason Aaron (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Mark Buckingham (Fables), Jim Calafiore (NED, Lord of the Pit), Howard Chaykin (Time Squared), Jo Chen (Runaways), Cliff Chiang (Paper Girls), Frank Cho (Harley Quinn), Steve Conley (The Middle Age), Olivia Cuartero-Briggs (The College Try), Todd Dezago (The Perhapanauts), Colleen Doran (The Sandman), Trish Forstner (Feral), Gene Ha (Mae), Larry Hama (GI Joe: A Real American Hero), Tony Harris (The Whistling Skull), Dan Jurgens (Action Comics), Mike Kunkel (Herobear and the Kid), Jae Lee (Inhumans), Jose Marzen Jr. (Y: The Last Man), Mike McKone (Teen Titans), Carla Speed McNeil (Finder), Adriana Melo (Fantastic Four), Pop Mhan (He-Man and the Masters of the Universe), Al Milgrom (Spectacular Spider-Man), Terry Moore (Strangers in Paradise), Bill Morrison (The Simpsons), Sarah Myer (TMNT Saturday Morning Adventures), Kevin Nowlan (Batman: Sword of Azrael), Patrick Olliffe (Untold Tales of Spider-Man), Ryan Ottley (Invincible), David Petersen (Mouse Guard), Tom Raney (Incredible Hulk), Craig Rousseau (The Perhapanauts), Louise Simonson (The Death of Superman 30th Anniversary Special), Walter Simonson (Thor), Matthew Dow Smith (DC’s Misfits of Magic), Scott Snyder (DC K.O.), Mark Waid (Action Comics), Matt Wieringo (Stagrate Atlantis: Gateways), and Thom Zahler (Long Distance),
