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Middle-Earth is coming to the Midwest, as two of the stars of the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy are coming to Chicago's C2E2 2025.

Sean Astin (Samwise Gamgee) and John Rhys-Davies (Gimli) are reuniting for a weekend with fans beginning Friday, April 11 at C2E2 2025. Astin will be there on Friday and Saturday, with Rhys-Davies giving you his axe all three days of the Chicago show.

The two will be participating in single and group photo opportunities with fans, along with numerous autograph opportunities. They are also participating in a Lord of the Rings reunion panel during the weekend  - and if its anything like the one we had with them at Emerald City Comic Con 2024, it's one you shouldn't miss.

You can sign up now for a Popverse C2E2 Superfan membership, guaranteeing you access to Fairy Tail Photo Ops and Autos, and more - including a $15 Voucher for Epic Photo ops, Fast Pass for Autographs/Photo Ops, and access to the Superfan Lounge. These come along with the already-loaded preexisting Superfan benefits, such as:

• Superfan variant limited-edition gift
• Access to ReedPop video archive on Popverse
• Members-only articles on Popverse
• Ad-free browsing on Popverse
• Community Discord Access
• Popverse Member Newsletter

Learn how everything I just listed can be yours right here, on our Members access page.

C2E2 2025 takes place at the Chicago's McCormick Place on Friday, April 11 through Sunday, April 13. You can buy tickets now!

Whether you're Shirefolk, Elven, Dwarven, or something else, there's a good reason to love Lord of the Rings. We do! With that in mind, we have a dragon's horde of goodies for you from a Lord of the Rings reading guide, a Lord of the Rings watch guide, details on the upcoming animated film Lord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim, a full the Lord of the Rings reunion panel you can watch, how the OG Hobbit actors stay in touch every day on a groupchat, and the true message of the Lord of the Rings film trilogy, according to Gimli himself - John Rhys-Davies.