Rue Morgue Festival of Fear (Canadian National Horror Expo)
StatusActive
GenreMulti-genre
VenueMetro Toronto Convention Centre
Location(s)Toronto, Ontario
CountryCanada
Inaugurated2004
Attendance91,000 in 2012
Organized byRue Morgue Magazine/Hobby Star Marketing Inc. joint
Filing statusCorporate
Websitehttp://www.fanexpocanada.com/

Toronto, Canada's Festival of Fear is an annual multigenre fan convention that runs as part of Fan Expo Canada. It was founded as the Canadian National Horror Expo in 2004 by Rue Morgue Magazine and Hobby Star Marketing Inc. It is traditionally a three-day event (Friday through Sunday) typically held the weekend before Labour Day during the summer in Toronto, Canada, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Since 2011 it has become a four-day-long event.

Originally showcasing novels, fantasy, film, television and related popular arts, the convention has expanded over the years to include a larger range of pop culture elements, such as horror, anime, manga, animation, toys, collectible card games, video games and web entertainment. The convention is the largest of its kind in Canada and among the largest in world, filling the entire south building of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre with over 91,000 attendees in 2012.

Along with panels, seminars, and workshops with industry professionals, there are previews of upcoming feature films, video game companies, and evening events such as The Masquerade; a costume contest, and other social receptions.

Typically there are over 175 hours of programming on all aspects of pop culture over the weekend.

History, locations and dates

Dates Location Attendees Notable guests Notes
August 27–29, 2004 Metro Toronto Convention Centre 27,684 George A. Romero, Tom Savini, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Doug Bradley, Julie Benz, Mercedes McNab, Brian Azzarello, Jill Thompson Rue Morgue Festival of Fear joins the Canadian National Expo, later to be renamed Fan Expo Canada as a feature event. Retailer arrested on show floor for selling numerous illegal weapons including throwing stars, nunchaku, one handed crossbows and brass knuckles.
August 26–28, 2005 Metro Toronto Convention Centre 39,753 Elijah Wood, Clive Barker, Gary Gygax, James Marsters, Kevin Sorbo, Crispin Glover, Marina Sirtis, Adam Baldwin, Margot Kidder, Elvira, Jhonen Vasquez. Attendance reaches facility limit and Toronto Fire Marshall's office halts ticket sales on Saturday afternoon.
September 1–3, 2006 Metro Toronto Convention Centre 42,947 Alice Cooper, Linda Blair, Jeffrey Combs, Karen Black, Rowdy Roddy Piper, Tony Todd, Ken Foree, Gunnar Hansen, Jeff Lieberman, Janet Tracy Keijser, Brian Keene, Athena Demos, Spehera Giron, Nancy Kilpatrick, Mike Mignola, Roman Dirge, Canadian National Expo re-branded as Fan Expo Canada. The show outgrows the North Building of the MTCC and moves to the much larger South Building.
August 24–26, 2007 Metro Toronto Convention Centre 43,738 David Prowse, Malcolm McDowell, Dario Argento, Adrienne Barbeau, Herschell Gordon Lewis, Angela Bettis, Greg Nicotero, Basil Gogos,
August 22–24, 2008 Metro Toronto Convention Centre 44,500 Sean Astin, Kristy Swanson, Tobe Hooper, John Saxon, Wes Craven, Sid Haig, Brad Dourif, Ruggero Deodato, Tura Satana, Shawnee Smith, Bruce McDonald, Hugh Dillon,
August 28–30, 2009 Metro Toronto Convention Centre 59,000 Leonard Nimoy, Bruce Campbell, Linda Hamilton, Thomas Dekker,

Mary McDonnell, Emma Caulfield, Leslie Nielsen, Roger Corman, Udo Kier, Barbara Steele, James Duval, Max Brooks, Jack Ketchum, and surprise guest Tobin Bell (unannounced).

Attendance reaches facility limit and Toronto Fire Marshal's office halts ticket sales for two hours on Saturday afternoon.
August 27–29, 2010 Metro Toronto Convention Centre 64,000+ William Shatner, Adam West, Burt Ward, Julie Newmar, James Marsters, Stan Lee, Summer Glau, Michelle Forbes, Dean Stockwell, Daniel Cudmore, Ernest Borgnine, David Cronenberg, Lance Henriksen, Ken Russell, Bill Moseley, William Forsythe, Heather Langenkamp, El Hijo Del Santo, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Anna Silk, Charles Band, Jill Thompson, Yoshitaka Amano, Ed Greenwood, Robin D. Laws, Casts of Todd and the Book of Pure Evil, Riese, Lost Girl, Dark Rising, Medium Raw: Night of the Wolf, I Spit On Your Grave, and Durham County. Attendance reaches facility limit and Toronto Fire Marshal's office halts ticket sales for four hours on Saturday afternoon.
August 25–28, 2011 Metro Toronto Convention Centre Over 79,000 Tom Felton, Eliza Dushku, Katee Sackhoff, John Astin, Robert Englund, Lexa Doig, Kevin Sorbo, Michael Biehn, Malcolm McDowell, John Waters, Elvira, Doug Bradley, Danielle Harris, Tom Savini, Heather Brewer, Martin Landau, Lance Henriksen, Anna Silk, Casts of Todd and the Book of Pure Evil, Lost Girl, Dark Rising, Medium Raw: Night of the Wolf, and surprise guest Guillermo del Toro (unannounced). First year running for 4 days, with Thursday added as the new extra day. Operating hours also expanded for each day.
August 23–26, 2012 Metro Toronto Convention Centre Over 91,000

See also

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