Awesome Con to kick off in DC this weekend

WASHINGTON - Awesome Con's annual convention returns to D.C. this weekend, bringing tens of thousands of fans to celebrate their favorite comics, movies, television shows, books, toys, games, cosplay, and more. 

Awesome Con runs from April 4 - 6 at the Walter E Washington Convention Center. 

What you can do:

Celebrities will be in attendance at this year's Awesome Con, including Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, Ming-Na Wen and The Lord of the Rings actors Orlando Bloom, Liv Tyler, John Rhys-Davies and Sean Astin.

Astin will appear on Saturday as part of a reunion of The Goonies, including Corey Feldman, Joe Pantoliano, Kerri Green, Martha Plimpton, Robert Davi. 

Orlando Bloom, Liv Tyler, and John Rhys-Davies will be on the Main Stage Sunday to share behind-the-scenes stories from The Lord of the Rings. 

See the full list of programming here.

Want to attend? Here's where you can purchase a badge. 

For those wanting to join in the fun from home, tune in to FOX LOCAL Saturday morning at 11:15 a.m. to watch live from the floor of the convention. 

FOX 5 DC is available to watch for free on Roku, Amazon FireTV, Apple TV, Google Android TV and Vizio with the FOX LOCAL app. FOX LOCAL is free 24/7 live streaming, breaking news, live video, weather forecasts, traffic reports and in-depth reporting on sports, politics, health and more.

Here’s how to download the FOX LOCAL app.

Local perspective:

WMATA expects an increase in Metro ridership  this weekend, particularly on the Yellow and Green lines which tservicehe Mt. Vernon Square station. You can also expect higher demand for taxis and rideshares. 

 District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Traffic Control Officers will be posted around the Convention Center to direct vehicular and pedestrian traffic.