Comic Con Astana draws record 76,000 visitors
The fifth anniversary Comic Con Astana became the largest pop culture festival in Central Asia, attracting over 76,000 attendees from more than 40 countries between August 6 and August 9, Qazinform News Agency reports.
This year it was held simultaneously at Barys Arena and the Alau Ice Palace for the first time.
The jubilee fifth festival brought together actors, artists, cosplayers, bloggers and content creators from Russia, China, the US, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, Italy, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Turkiye and other countries.
The opening day of Comic Con Astana 2026 set a new attendance record, with around 16,000 visitors taking part in the international festival on August 6.
One of the festival highlights is star guests, including Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, best known for his Jaime Lannister in the Game of Thrones series, Paul Anderson, known for portraying Arthur Shelby in Peaky Blinders, as well as Inaki Godoy and Taz Skylar starred in Netflix’s One Piece.
The festival featured dozens of cosplayers, bloggers, and digital creators, including Jay Kim, Kirill Soerov, SuperCrastan, Jane Kravitz, Karrambaby, Dobryak, Dalbek, FixEye and Paolo Pantalena.
Kazakh creators showcased projects, notably Tengrida: Cyber Steppe, an AI-powered cyberpunk art film blending Great Steppe culture with AI technologies.
This year, the cosplay contest prize pool made 20 million tenge. It was judged by international cosplay stars like Kamui Cosplay, Leon Chiro, Grafomanka, Zakos Snowman, Tais Tukanova, Sazura and others.
The festival music program featured K-pop group Kandis.
Comic Con Astana has evolved from an experimental event into a major international festival, shaping creative industries, event tourism, and urban geek culture.
Organizers emphasized the festival’s role as a platform for both global stars and emerging Kazakh talent.
