MANILA - It's that time of the year again for Filipinos who are into pop culture to gather.

This coming weekend, the third AsiaPop Comicon (APCC) will be happening in Manila where fans from the region will be treated to an ultimate pop culture experience.

In an interview at the sidelines of the APCC press conference on Wednesday, Abdulla Mahmood, marketing and business development head of the Al Ahli Holding Group, said they are expecting more fans this year since they have added "more exciting talent and content."

"I certainly believe that traffic will increase in comparison to the last two years. Like we said, we had around 40,000 last year. And I believe those numbers should increase this year. We’re hoping there will be a jump off of at least 20% or higher," he said.

While the APCC was originally intended as a platform for international personalities to come to the Philippines, this year will cover more bases with Filipino TV stars and digital media influencers also participating.

This year's APCC will feature popular local celebrities including Daniel Padilla, Kathryn Bernardo, Joshua Garcia and Julia Barretto.

Like in the past years, Mahmood said this year's APCC will also serve as a venue for local talents to showcase their skills and be acknowledged by people from international studios who are coming over.

"One of the [good things] that has taken place is that we have people from Marvel who have been coming for years. So what they do is do a portfolio of review of all the budding talents here... So that has been a great opportunity for a normal Filipino talent to be acknowledged by Marvel and give him a project. It’s a huge platform. And that’s the whole idea of AsiaPop Comicon," he explained.

But it's the celebrity headliners who still serve as the main draws of the festival. Among the Hollywood stars who will grace this year's pop culture convention are Ray Fisher from the upcoming DC film "Justice League,” Tyler Hoechlin from the MTV series "Teen Wolf" and CW's "Supergirl," and Joe Keery, Noah Schnapp, Dacre Montgomery and Sadie Sink from the Netflix original "Stranger Things."

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The event will also feature comic artists Whilce Portacio, Artgerm, Carl Potts and Rodney Ramos.

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Furthermore, the APCC will see a cosplay competition -- dubbed The CAGE -- with guests like Alodia Gosiengfiao, Myrtle Sarrosa, Pion Kim, Jinbehindinfinity, Canvas Cosplay and Haiden Hazard.

Another highlight would be the "Hall M" showcase, which will treat fans with exclusive content from Marvel’s movie, television and web series.

Tickets for APCC, which will be held at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City on August 25 to 27, are already available in all SM Ticket outlets.